Burning Down the School
by Smiley-chan
Summary: AU 'I didn't like school at home Sora, but it may not be too bad here. I mean, look at our girly roomates,' Riku snickered. Cloud Strife rose an eyebrow questioningly and the wetstone slid across Sephiroth's kantana with an ominous screech. SLASH. CH.8 up
1. According to Riku's Logic

_Okay, this is my first Kingdom Hearts fic that I have the audacity to post, but I think it's pretty good._

_Riku- snort pretty good my ass._

_OH YEAH, this story MAY have some SHOUNAN AI/YOAI/ SLASH, in later chapters! (Okay, I take that back, it WILL)_

_And I don't own Kingdom Hearts…uh…Ansem does. ;_

**Prologue- According to Riku's Logic (or lackthereof)**

Holding his breath, a brunette gripped the edge of his armrest, making his knuckles turn white. He really,_really_ hated riding in planes. The thought of being thousands of feet in the air, with a ton of people, being able to crash into the ocean…made him unbearably sick to his stomach. He leaned back in his chair trying to calm his nerves. 'Think about something else besides your motion sickness, Sora,' he thought. 'Think about what? How you screwed up!' Sora silently cursed his inner voices. 'Yeah, Sora' said that voice again. 'Think about this! You're heading to _boarding school_!' Sora's stomach did a Russian gymnast quality back flip. This whole affair was making him even more nervous. Well, at least he wasn't alone. He still had Riku. Sora sighed heavily. He still had _Riku_.

He glanced next to him at his silver haired best friend. Riku was completely engrossed in his _Playstation Magazine_, occasionally frowning or smirking, or popping salted peanuts into his mouth. Sora narrowed his eyes at his best friend's complete obliviousness. Even worse, the silver-haired one was _fearless_. No one did anything without considering the repercussions.

Except Riku, _of course._

Riku wasn't afraid of leaving his home, wasn't afraid of air planes, and definitely had no fear of getting expelled. He was just to cool for that "petty" stuff, as he called it.

Yes. Sora, innocent tag-along Sora, had been expelled. It couldn't have been worse if they had painted "misfit" on his buttocks in red paint. Sora felt extremely disheartened about the entire thing, if you wanted to put it lightly.

It seems that Isla Destiny High School had gotten more than tired of their antics, or shall we say 'Riku's antics'. Leave it to Riku to jump off a cliff and bring everything down with him.

"Are you even going to say anything?" Sora hissed.

"Sure," Riku said adjusting his headphones appropriately. "You might feel better if you stick your head between your knees." Besides completely disregarding the rules of society, he could also sometimes be an unsufferable asshole. And Riku knew it.

Sora rolled his eyes heavenwards, although he did take his friends advice. "That's not what I meant."

"Oh, so you wanted me to say," Riku smiled mischievously and feigned a dramatic face, "_I'm so sorry, Sora! All of this was my fault-_"

"YES IT WAS!" Sora shrieked a little too loudly.

------

The fourteen-year old tapped his older friend's shoulder.

"Remind me _why _we're doing this again, please…."

Riku rolled his eyes and released an exasperated sigh. "To show this school who's boss, our country's a democracy!" One of Riku's many short speeches. 'For freedom of speech, the welfare of our fellow students, the right to less homework!' Or Sora's personal favorite, 'Please. They're trying to poison us. Chickens don't have nuggets Sora! Its this giant conspiracy..." The list just went on and on.

Sora knitted his eyebrows together. _Democracy?_ "I don't see what that has to do with dung-bombing the Chem. Lab-"

"Absolutely nothing." Oh, so he really was just bored.

"So-"

Riku rolled his aqua eyes yet again. "This is target practice, ya know. For like the _big _fight."

"Oh, the Principal's office."

"I _am _rubbing off on you Sora, halleluiah," Riku said with a prideful smirk.

Sora frowned. "But, what if we-"

"We _won't_ get caught, trust me."

------

Riku shrugged. "Okay, so maybe it _was _my fault," he admitted with an award winning grin. "But look at this as a blessing in disguise."

Sora glared icily at his friend. "Care to point out the silver lining Riku?" he hissed vehemently.

"For one," Riku started, "We are off that island that is forsaken by any god, where nothing happens. This is like an adventure! We are on a _plane _for God's sake. Going to _America_, and going to a _coed _boarding school!" He added with bright-eyed rapture. "And, this school specializes in combat and magic development. You may have a chance yet!"

Sora's lips formed his signature pout. So he was a bit a wimp. No biggie. He crossed his arms huffily and tapped his fingers. Riku punched him playfully in the side of his arm.

"Did I mention it's a coed school, did you hear that?"

"Like I care!" Sora screeched, feeling like he could shove his Sci-fi novel strait up Riku's…nose, and not feel bad about it.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "You're not _gay…are you_?"

A stewardess passed by with a reprimanding look on her face, her tightly-held bun looking like it was about to explode of the top of her head. "_Sir_, could you _try _not to be so loud? You're upsetting your neighbors."

Now what she was really saying was: _"Shut up little boy. I do this every day for work, I haven't had coffee yet. And I know Kung-Fu."_

"Yes Ma'am," Sora whimpered, sliding down farther into his seat, feeling his face turn the color of a ripe tomato. Riku seemed to be having a jolly old time with this smirking and singing.

"_Bad boys, Bad Boys, wutcha gonna do, wutcha gonna do when the **cabin assistant **finds you?"_

Sora reclined his chair, blocking out the noise by blaring _Dir En Grey _through his headphones.

"Riku?"

"Yes Sora?"

"Remind me to kill you when we get off the plane."

(-)(-)

"Sora, Sora…" A voice called that seemed to come from a far off distance. Wow...creepy inner voices. "Sora!" The voice snapped pinching one of his cheeks like an angry hair barrette.

"What the _flip_ is it!" Sora yelled, snapping out of his death-like trance known as sleep.

Riku crossed his arms. "Sir! There's no need for such _vulgar _language!" Riku replied, obviously amused at the day's earlier events. "Yeah, it's time to get off the plane. If I and the school teacher would have had to come in here and _carry _you out, I would have not been a happy camper." Riku grabbed Sora's forearm and hoisted him out of his seat with ease. Both boys retrieved their carry-on baggage from under their chairs and began to walk out. They passed an old looking sign that read "Welcome to Oakland International Airport". Sora noticed the look on Riku's face, and could just imagine anime style sparkles float across his eyes.

Riku seemed a little more than impatient when in came to check in and baggage check. Worse was the International Relations desk."Yes!" he exclaimed peevishly . "For the last time, we are planning on staying!" Sora poked his friend's arm. "Not now!"

"But Riku, you're speaking in Japanese…."

He smiled. "…I knew that."

(-)(-)

Once the nightmare known as international relations was done and over with, they collected their baggage and sat outside, waiting for their ride. It was beginning to get dark and they didn't want to wait much longer, lest they freeze.

"So, what do you think this school is gonna be like?" Sora asked, trying to kill the awkward silence that seemed to be gnawing on his mind.

"I dunno," Riku hastily replied. "Probably stuck up and filled to the brim with perfect people. They probably all wear sweater-vests and sip tea with their lunch."

Sora nodded. "I bet we could whip them good at sword fights."

Riku gasped suddenly, wrinkling his nose in the process.

"What?"

"_Uniforms…_" Riku whispered disgustedly. "The embodiment of brainwashing conformity." He gave Sora a pathetic look.

Sora laughed at his friend's expression. "I'm sorry, Riku, but it looks like you're going to have to live with conformity for a wh–"

"Hey! You two!" an annoyed voice interrupted. Riku and Sora turned their heads to see a tall brunette man who was tapping his foot, and staring at his watch. "Are you Riku Nusai and Sora Kamayasi?"

"Who wants to know?" Riku said coolly.

The stranger didn't seem intimidated at all, quite apathetic to be more specific."A very irritated sparring teacher by the name of Squall Leonhart. Call me Leon. But call me Squall and your asking for it," he said hurriedly. They weren't sure they wanted to know what "it" was. Sora furrowed his brows together. And who exactly was this…

"What the heck are you waiting for? Christmas? Let's go, the headmaster isn't going to wait forever."

Oh, so he was the school representative guy. But, Squall was so…so…cool. There was no way he was from a boarding school. He wore baggy black jeans with a white T-shirt and a leather jacket. In short, he didn't seem to fit in with the whole tea and crumpets scene. He looked as if he should be starring in some adventure movie or something.

Squall peered down at them through black sunglasses, wondering why they weren't moving. "Let's go".

* * *

So how was it? Spiffy? Not so Spiffy? Spiffy like "Give up on writing now and save yourself the trouble"? Whatever. Review please! 

**This chapter has been edited, and reposted, due to a certain author's inability to use good grammar. There has been no change in the story plot, so for those of you that have read this chapter before, there really isn't anything different about it, except for the correction of some errors and a couple of lines added.**

**-Thanx**

**Smiley-chan**


	2. Ways to Insult One's Manhood

Thanx for the reviews. I makes me happy!

Tetsuya Nomura is so freakin brilliant. I could never steal Kingdom Hearts from him. That means I don't own it. But I do own this! (steals Ansem's black Keyblade and runs away laughing maniacally)

------

**Chapter 2- I'll Take: Ways to Insult One's Manhood (For 600 Please)**

Riku and Sora glanced at each other apprehensively as they climbed inside the tiny passenger space of a shiny red pickup truck. _Leon _pulled himself into the drivers seat. He didn't even offer them a stony eyed glance before he turned on the ignition, making Sora jumped slightly as the entire vehicle gave a jolt. Riku smiled a little, impressed but unintimidated by the leather clad stoic-man. After all, anyone who could drive a stick-shift got extra points.

Squall sighed exasperatedly as he pulled down the road, like he had something better to be doing.

"So, what's your reason for being so unhappy?" Riku inquired, catching Squall's ice colored eyes in the rear-view mirror. Squall looked away.

"I'm _not_ unhappy," he replied dryly. Riku rolled his eyes, his nature not allowing something to drop that easily. However, whether by accident or that he had the incredible insight into the inner workings of the silver-haired boy, Squall started talking before Riku had the chance.

"As long as we're _stuck_ in here," Squall began. Wow. Squally sure knew how to make you feel cheery. "We might as well go over ground rules. Not mine, since I have a completely different and more extensive list. At Saint Barrett's, you have Saturdays and Sundays off, you can do anything you like as long as you stay with the _San Juan _Village and get back by curfew, which is eight. Monday through Friday, you _have to _stay on school campus. Class begins at 7:45 and ends and 4:00-"

Sora groaned out loud. Talk about a long school day.

Squall raised an eyebrow. "You have a problem? We can always send you back."

Sora turned pink shook his head. His mother would fry him alive if he showed up on her doorstep with his bags. He'd find it hard to sayto her _'Oops, sorry Mom. Sent me back before I even got there!"_

"Didn't think so. Like I was saying, 'till four, but that's bearable because in general, you won't have much homework. While you're in class, you wear your uniform, but since the school is pretty laid back, you could probably get away with wearing anything in your free time. When you're not in class, you can stay in your dorms, visit the rec. room, etcetera. I'm sure that your class mates can fill you in on anything else you really need to know. Oh one more thing…" He took on a serious tone. "No girls in the dorms past six."

Riku smirked, brushing aside a strand of silvery hair. "Now do I really look like _that _kind of guy?"

"Nope," Squall replied pushing his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose. "I was actually talking about scrawny over there". Sora blushed madly.

Wait...hey!

"I'd be more afraid of having _guys _in the same room with _you_, blondie".

Blood slowly crept onto Riku's face. He crossed his arms in a huff and rolled his eyes like usual, muttering something incoherent that only Sora (who was trained in the art) could catch. "You'd really like that _wouldn't you_?"

"What was that?"

"SCREW YOU, LEON!"

----

After a two-hour drive and a whole lot of Riku and Squall bickering plus Sora reminding himself to shut up, they arrived at their destination, Saint Barrett's. Riku was the first one out of the truck, slamming the door roughly as if to say "good riddance!". Well...sort of. His choice of vocabulary would have been a lot more colorful. Sora followed suit, still a little shocked, not knowing there where that many ways to insult someone's integrity and manhood.

"Mr., uh, Squall-

"Leon."

"Yeah, sorry," Sora replied hastily. "Were are we supposed to go exactly?"

Squall, who was busying himself with their bags simply said, "Take the main stairway all the way up to the headmaster's office. He'll help you get settled and such."

"Right," Riku said," Thanks for nothing…_Squall._"

"That's Leon rat. And don't you forget it," Squall growled, turning around to hoist one of the bags that Riku had brought every possession he could possibly fit in. Riku smirked, making a very rude gesture with his hand behind the man's back. Then, Riku jogged to catch up with his spiky-haired friend.

Sora was pushing on the front door trying to get it open. Riku stood there more a moment and blinked at the effort his friend was exerting trying to push the door open. "Sora?" Riku asked raising an eye brow. "The door says _pull_."

"Right…I knew that."

----

Riku and Sora cautiously stepped inside. "Wow," Sora said in amazement staring around him. Riku nodded in agreement.

"Wow, this makes our old school look like a pile of chocobo shit. Talk about high class". The entrance to the school was almost like a cathedral. Long stained-glass windows seemed to merge with the arched ceilings that had such delicate moldings that it looked like they'd been carved with toothpicks. There was a gargoyle-like statue that stood in the middle of the room, spewing water from it's mouth into a fountain basin below. Behind this, was a split staircase, part of which looked like it simply led into a the next room while the other spiraled up and looked rather important.

"There it is," Riku said finally, grabbing Sora and leading him up the steps. Riku broke into a sprint, causing his friend to jerk forward, struggling to keep up.

"Common Riku!" Sora puffed, wondering what the rush was for. "We both know you're a better runner than me so just-"

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" said an unfamiliar voice, but carrying a familiar tone. Sora winced. He had been hoping to avoid that reprimanding tone at least one day.

Descending from the other staircase, a girl about their own age looked livid. She whipped a notepad out of one pocket with one pad while removing a ballpoint pen from behind her ear. By the look on this girl's face one would have assumed that Sora and Riku had just committed all seven deadly sins. Wagging her finger back and forth she said, "Running in the halls is _not allowed_".

Sora just about died. Riku frowned and tried to move past her, but she stepped in his path.He quirked an eyebrow but then smirked. "And who are _you _to tell me so, some kind of super-hall moniter?"

She looked at Riku like he was some type of impudent lunatic, shaking her short red hair back and forth. "For your information, I am a SEED: Student, Edu-"

"Yeah, you're a hall monitor, I got it," Riku said before she could get in another word. "Let's haul ass Sora," he said yanking Sora's hand, and resumed sprinting up the stairs.

"Wait!" the girl shrieked. "I have to take down your names!"

"Sorry!" Sora yelled back.. "It won't happen again!" Riku yanked his hand harder.

"You're such a kiss-up Sora."

"Am not!" Sora defended.

"Yes Sora. I'm afraid to say you are."

"I wasn't kissing up I was-"

"Flirting!" Riku shrieked uncharacteristically.

"No!…well yeah, yes I was," Sora admitted, blushing like a schoolgirl. "What is it? That only the great Riku can do so?"

"No…but why her?"

Sora shrugged. "She was cute if you didn't notice."

"Sure," Riku mumbled half-heartedly. "If you like snooty stuck up girls."

"Maybe," Sora said blowing the raspberries at his friend.

Riku's mouth dropped open, but snapped it shut quickly with a small "Hmph!"

"I believe that 'Squall' was right!"

The smart remark instantaneously left Sora's mouth. "What? Me getting the girl or the part about you being gay?"

Sora almost gasped his blatant stupidness and felt his conscience turn his stomach inside out without mercy.

"Riku...I-"

The silver boy have him a half glance through his bangs, but that was short lived. He offered no response to Sora's half muttered apology, his lips pursed in an almost hurt way. Instead, he kept climbing the stairs, in a way that would have suggested that the comment hadn't even registered with him.

Sora felt dirty, and allowed himself to walk a few steps behind his friend. Silent moments like these happened ever so often. He kept hoping for it to end the way they always did. Riku would punch him lightly in the arm, or mess up his hair. Then he would ask why his face was so droopy and offer a quirky, yet award winning grin. It would then all be okay.

Sora only suspected that Riku had more than one kind of smile.

Riku was the only one who really knew that this particular one was reserved for the sole purpose of bringing back the smile on _Sora's_ face.

----

"Riku?" Sora asked, inhaling sharply.

"Yeah?"

"How many more stairs you think?"

Riku gazed off up the staircase."A lot, Sora, a lot."

"More or less than two-hundred?"

"Um…more."

Sora leaned against the wall, panting. "Oh God, what did I do to deserve this?" he moaned. This staircase of doom seemed to stretch on forever like an alternate dimension.

"Shut up Sora," Riku said, "Suck it up. "Although…" Riku paused. "This may be a way for the headmaster to keep kids away." Sora would practically see Riku adding this to his mental list of injustices done of teenagers by school.

Wiping his brow, Sora spotted what seemed to be an end to the endless hall of stairs. "Nevermind, there's the office."

They climbed the remaining stairs and approached a large mahogany door with silver-polished handles and a silver plaque engraved with "Headmaster". Sora was impressed to say the least. The principal's office at Destiny High was merely a sticker with the name "Principal Westlier" surrounded by a door of very old and very peeling paint. But there was something very wrong…

"Riku?"

"Yeah?" he responded.

"I feel…cold," Sora stated.

"Kind of creepy aint it?"

Sora shook his head. "I am _not _going in there."

"But Sora!" Riku whined in a fair impression of his friend.

"Eh?"

Riku crossed his arms and whispered, "I'm not going!"

Both boys sighed at exactly the same time, as if on cue. Obviously one of them was going to have to go in. "Okay," Sora said. "This guy _can't _be so bad. We're just nervous."

Riku nodded. "I-I'm not nervous…I just don't like Principal's offices."

Sora snorted facetiously. "I'm sure you don't! Considering that you visited one every other day of your life."

"Damn strait!" Riku exclaimed with some kind of rather disturbing pride. "Okay, so…on the count of three, knock."

Both boys raised their fists or the door-

"One…two…three!"

-and knocked on the door loudly.

Sora fidgeted slightly and Riku sighed, placing his hands on his waist impatiently. "Maybe they didn't hear us?" Sora suggested.

A scuffling sound came from within as something got up to answer the door. The door slowly began to swing open…

Review PLZ!

someone- thanx! Well. Here's the next chapter!

Raven- I appreciate it. Denmark huh? Wow.

DragonRose13- what are you doing here? All you know about Kingdom Hearts is that Squall Leonhart is in it!

Riyoji Jeremishou- thanks! don't worry. It isn't a KH fic without Ansem!

**This chapter has been edited, and reposted, due to a certain author's inability to use good grammar. There has been no change in the story plot, so for those of you that have read this chapter before, there really isn't anything different about it, except for the correction of some errors and a couple of lines added.**

**-Thanx**

**Smiley-chan**


	3. Cold Shower Water

Thank you all for your nice reviews. 15 in two chapters. That must be a record for me or something…so without further ado...

I may not legally own Kingdom Hearts, but I own it. -points at closet- Shut up in there! They'll find you!

The door slowly began to swing open…

**Chapter 3: Of Showers and the Effects of Toilets Upon Them.**

Sora drew a breath. This was it.

"Welcome!" said a deep, smooth voice. Before they realized it. Both Sora and Riku were swept up into an unavoidable grizzly bear hug. Riku groaned, very much liking his personal space, and tried to release himself from the assaulting person. However, though Riku had strength and agility beyond the abilities of most fifteen year olds, he found he could not escape.

"We are glad to have you attend our school," he said, dropping the soon-to-be students on the floor. The man had bright…amber... no, gold eyes that smiled inwardly like a courageous but self-seeking man. His lips curled themselves into an overjoyed smile as well. Sure it was happy, but more like "I'm so happy that you're here, because your mother is paying your tuition!"

Sora rubbed his forearms to restore the feeling in them. He blinked. This school was as weird as it comes, and not only because they were there. "Um, we're here to see the headmaster," he stuttered.

The man opened the door wider. "Well?" he asked. "Are you going to come in or are you waiting for the draft?" Sora jumped to his feet, followed by Riku who was brushing non-existent dust off of his cloths. The man closed the door behind him, taking a seat behind a large desk, propping his feet on it. Sora's mother would have had a fit. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"You…are the headmaster?" Riku asked raising an eyebrow questioningly. He hardly looked old enough to be a studnet teacher. Those gold eyes were framed by honey-brown skin on his angular face, with long silver hair that was slicked back at the front and tied back at the base of his neck. If it weren't for his older twenties look, someone could have mistaken him for a rebel student. So naturally the thought that he was in charge around here was rather amusing.

"Yes," he replied simply. "My name Ansem. Not Mr. Ansem, nor Professor Ansem, simply Ansem."

Riku choked visibly, but in a good way. "Are you _serious_!"

Ansem started to rummage through some papers absentmindedly. He crumbled up two of the papers, tossing them behind his head. One managed to make it into the waste basket and a small, fidgety blue creature scurried in and disposed of the other one "Quite serious Mr. Nusai."

Wrinkling his nose Riku replied, "Mr. Nusai was my father." Which, he really didn't care to be associated with.

"So I will not call you by your last name as I expect not to be."

"What _is_ your last name?" Sora asked. Ansem laced his fingers and leaned forward on his desk.

"How did the Egyptians line up the pyramids astronomically? Is there intelligent life on Mars? How many licks does it take to get to the tootsie roll center of a tootsie pop?"

Riku smiled slightly. "The world may never know."

Ansem, seeming to have proved is point said, "Exactly". Finding what he needed, Ansem slid two pieces of paper across the table. "You will need to sign these; it's a letter that we send to your parents to insure them that you made it here alive."

Riku took the pen and hastily scribbled his signature at the bottom.

Ansem looked at Riku with a curious stare that vaguely reminded Sora of cat that was deciding if it wanted to play with its food. It was defiantly odd, but he decided it was best to brush it off.

"Most students use this as an opportunity to write a short letter to their parents," the dark-skinned man commented as Riku slid the paper back without looking at it. That weird, analyzing look still shimmered in his eyes.

Riku shrugged, leaning back in his chair. "They wouldn't read it if I did."

Instead of looking concerned or even sympathetic, the headmaster cocked his head slightly, the same smile playing on his lips as if he was interested. However, he didn't say anything as he tucked Riku's paper into a peach-colored folder.

Sora looked over at his friend while signing the papers. He knew what Riku was thinking, not like a psychic or something, but a glimpse of empathy. All of Riku's life, his parents had been less than supportive. Most of the time they worked or were too stressed to spend time with their only son. Riku acted as if he didn't care. Sora thought that a new school was a huge drag, but for Riku, it might be a second chance. Riku had said it was for the best. He was somewhere far away from them and they wouldn't be around to cause trouble for them anymore.

Ansem took the paper from Sora's hands and handed each of them a schedule, a flyer for recreational activities, a guide book, a map, and lastly their dorm assignments. "Thank god you've come," Ansem mumbled. "I finally have someone to keep those two alive. Looks like your boarding with Black and Strife. Good students, they just don't…get along very well". Neither of them knew how much of an understatement that was. Ansem stood up, waving one hand towards the door. "You are dismissed."

--------------------------

_I observed their habits the whole time. The brunette, "Sora", may prove to be more trouble than he is worth. It may prove difficult in dealing with him. His personality is far to light-hearted._

_But the other, silver haired one, is full of conflict. I see that he could be easily persuaded and confused. His heart could be broken. He suffers neglect and perhaps…unrequited love. He could easily become what I've planned for him. Becoming a heartless isn't that hard when you're weak of heart._

----------------

Riku hurtled down the flight of stairs, sprinted down a hall and skidded to a stop in front of a door. Sora whipped around the same corner, nearly slamming into his best friend from the behind, courtesy of the forces of inertia. Sora slumped to the floor. "Awe man…what's the score now?"

Riku shrugged. "I dunno. Zero to some rather large number."

"Dammit!"

Riku smiled weakly, ruffling Sora's hair teasingly. "You wouldn't lose if you hadn't challenged me you know?"

Sora merely stared at the ground in defeat, tracing a circle on the floor with one of his fingers. 'Why are you so much better than me!' his mind yelled at Riku. He could imagine his friend surrounded by flames, laughing his evil ass off, and pointing a pitchfork in his direction. Life was so not fair.

Riku watched as Sora's face contorted with displeasure. Riku waited…and there and behold. The "Sora" pout. He keeled into laughter. It was like watching Old Faithful. It was as dependable as the sun shining. And he got a kick out of it every time.

Wiping the tears of mirth away from eyes, Riku extended a hand and helped Sora off the floor. "You shouldn't try so hard at something hopeless."

"I will beat you some day!" Sora proclaimed, jabbing a finger in Riku's general direction. "Just as you will find a girl that doesn't think your homo-"

Riku tackled Sora to the ground. "Not funny," he hissed. Then a comical look crossed Riku's eyes. Sora was scared. Very. Scared.

A playful smirk crossed his lips. "How do you know I'm not?" Sora's eyes grew the size of dinner plates. He heart began to beat at an irrational pace at the mere awkwardness of that statement. He couldn't be…could he? I mean he was _Riku_ the lady killer. He had more girlfriends then could possibly be considered sane for a man of any age. But...what if...

"B-because! You're not!" Sora stuttered quickly.

"Your right," Riku said, the smirk still lingering. "So…off with the wisecrack!" Riku got off his friend and flicked him in the forehead. "You smartass." Sora made a loud whiny noise that made him sound as though he'd been shot in the butt.

The door of their dormitory swung open about a foot. Out popped a mop of blond hair that defied gravity as much as Sora's did, followed by a face with a startled look upon it. "W-hat the hell is happening out here?" he demanded. "It sounds like someone was dying, or someone had strangled a cat…" Both Riku and Sora pointed at each other. The boy raised a blond eyebrow.

"Are you guys new or something?"

"Yeah," Riku said. Sora nodded too. "Are you… Black?"

The blond snorted, obviously amused, and shook his head. "Nope, Strife." He extended his hand for a friendly shake. "That's Cloud Strife to anyone who wants to know". Sora shook his hand, wondering faintly why Cloud seemed a bit surprised.

"I'm Sora."

"You are one of the first people who have done that," Cloud said slightly amused. It was at that moment that Sora realized that there wasn't any flesh touching his fingertips. Only cold, hard metal. Sora gently pulled his hand away although he was startled enough to run away like a little girl.

Cloud laughed. "It was a gift from a friend," he explained, referring to a gold mechanical looking claw that covered his right hand. "Are you gonna be our roommates?" Cloud asked, maybe a little too hopefully. Sora hated to think that this might suggest what the other roommate was like.

"That's what we're here for," Riku sighed, picking up one of his many bags that had been conveniently delivered to the door. "I'm Riku, by the way". Sora did the same, walking into the room that would be their home for the months ahead.

Once they entered, there was a distinct line of who lived on which side of the room. There were four beds, two on either side. The first side, closest to the door, was the side on which the owner liked to sleep in a pile of clutter, never finding the time to put things away. Things such as a gameboy advance and magazines lined the head of the bead. It was like stepping into a normal fourteen year old boy's room. The other side however, was eerily tidy. The bed was actually _made_, and everything was sorted into even piles. A small one-person T.V. with its PS2 occupied small table in the corner. Everything was neat and in place. Riku decided he liked it better, plopping himself on the untaken bed.

Sora on the other hand, chose not to live with the walking male version of Martha Stewart, finding that the cluttered side felt homey.

Cloud followed them in, sitting on the bed that was assumed to be his own on the cluttered side of the room. He flipped through one of the magazines while talking to them. "So, Riku got the short end of the stick?"

Sora gave his a questioning look and Riku shook his head. As far as he was concerned, cleaner was better. Sora shrugged. As if he knew.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," Cloud chuckled. "You may have got the clean part, but you also got the most rotten part of it all."

"Should I ask?"

The blond shrugged indifferently. "You'll find out sooner or later. Just hope that it's later."

Sora thought he could hear the trickle of running water in the bathroom. Obviously, the occupant of the cleaner side of the room was taking a shower. 'He couldn't possibly be that bad' Sora thought.

Sora cocked his head, thinking of something he was supposed to remember. "Oh yeah, is there anything we should know. Like, who not to mess with, and rules and stuff?"

"Yeah," Cloud said immediately, pausing briefly to recall anything important . "Never mess with Squall Leonhart. He's the sparring teacher. Even if he's not allowed to kill you, you still might end up out cold for a couple of hours."

Riku gulped audibly.

"Second, don't eat the chicken nuggets, unless you feel like mutating," Cloud said wrinkling his nose. "Chickens don't have nuggets anyway. Third, don't try to kiss up to Miss Jenova. She only has one favorite". Cloud rolled his eyes sky high. "Lastly, if you're going to prank, don't get caught by a SEED. In general, if they don't see, they don't care."

"That's all?" Riku asked. "At our old school, there were cliques and bullies who would beat the crap out of us if we mouthed off." Or planted stink bombs in their backpacks, what's the difference?

Cloud waved his mechanical hand back and forth. "No, no. We have those too, but are bullies are more…refined," Cloud said, remembering a time that his roommate and a friend of his surrounded him and cast Blizzaga and Firaga at the same time. Being frozen and burnt at the same time was not exactly a pleasant experience. "As more cliques, there are more than I can count. I can translate for you. Basically, SOLDIER equals a jock, blackmage equals a goth, and whitemage and SeEDs lean toward the preppy side. Oh, and also, if you are a class clown you are a Cheshire. As in the cat."

"Great!" Sora said throwing his hands behind his head. "I feel enlightened."

"One more thing," Cloud said, suddenly remembering something that made him smile insanely. Sora suddenly felt as if he'd rather be at Ansem's disposal right now than be on the receiving end of whatever that smile meant. "If someone is on the same floor of the school as you, and they flush the toilet, your shower water goes cold. Ice cold," he said as mischievous grin began to form on his face. "Which reminds me…"

Cloud picked up the phone from the side table, hitting a button on speed dial. "Hello? Hey Tidus. Yeah it's me. Do me a favor, would you?..." Cloud paused. "What makes you think I'd do that? I was asking you if you'd flush the toilet… I dunno, five times…Uh-huh…of course, yes…yes _he_ is in the shower. I know, I know, I _owe_ you. Thanks Tidus," Cloud hung up the phone, happy with a touch of satisfaction.

Riku chuckled slightly. Sora did also. "What was that about?" Sora asked amused.

"You'll find out soon enough," Cloud said shrugging.

A few seconds later, a loud exclamation of discomfort, otherwise known as yell, rang from inside the washroom. Two seconds later, the threat came. "STRIFE, I AM GOING TO _KILL YOU! _"

* * *

thekatgrl: Thanx so much for the review. At least I'm "saving someone from bad fanfiction hell". Lmao! 

Anthroprincess: Thanx. You need to update the Sunblade fic girl! Or I shall hurt you.

Sapphire of Serenity: you're really hooked? Wow! Thanx!

Tyson Foxflame: who r u and why are you glomping me? sweatdrops That's ok tho, I know I'm…appreciated now. You send hella nice reviews! gloms Tyson back so nice! Thanx for the chocolate rose! Well, you asked for Cloud, you got him!

Leann-chan: I read one like this too. I actually started thinking of this one a while back tho. But, thank you for the compliment! As for the pairing, you'll have to wait and see. But I do luv Shounen Ai, a lot…

CLOUD-FANATIK88: Whoa…Slow down on the sugar intake. Sure, I'll read your stories. The only KH Yoai couple I like is r/s. Well, maybe a little Cloud/Seph, but I probably shouldn't say that to a Cloud fan girl…runs and hides

Riyoji Jeremishou: Well, here's Ansem! Thanx for the review!

Raven: Awe, don't say that! No fanfic is a piece of crap, unless it is sickingly lemony. (I can stand Lemon, but not LEMON) Thank you so much, to the girl from Denmark!

DragonRose13: Finally appreciating my work eh? Well, I downloaded the whole first Kingdom Hearts manga in English. Do you want me to send it to you? It's really a lot different from the game, but it's good. If you ever wanna learn the story of the game, ask.

**This chapter has been edited, and reposted, due to a certain author's inability to use good grammar. There has been no change in the story plot, so for those of you that have read this chapter before, there really isn't anything different about it, except for the correction of some errors and a couple of lines added.**

**-**


	4. Social Problems

_Holy Guacamole! I got so much positive feedback. Iam defiantly inspired. For the plot followers, this is my favorite chapter yet so...enjoy! _

_Disclaimer: What the point of saying you don't own it when you automatically know "I don't own Kingdom Hearts Dammit!", when you see the word "discalaimer"?_

**Chapter 4: 'Social Problems' Doesn't Begin to Cover It.**

The sound of running water ceased less than a second later. The dead silence in the room seemed to make Cloud give a scary, half-mouthed smile while Riku looked both amused and very curious. Sora was either nervous or scared, which it was, he couldn't quite tell. The door of the washroom was flung open and hit the wall behind it with probably enough force to leave a good sized hole.

The one standing in the doorway looked so pissed off that he could have _melted_ steel with his gaze. His waist-length silver hair was plastered to his porcelain colored skin, letting water begin to puddle on the carpet. Holding a towel on his waist with his hand, he flexed his other hand in a way that suggested that they had _no_ idea at all how angry he was or even that he was contemplating casting a spell on each and everyone one of them. Eventually, his venomous green-eyed glare found its way to Cloud, who looked up from his magazine, managing to keep a stoic expression upon his face. This seemed to only aggravate the silver-haired one more. "I am going to _kill_ you..." the boy hissed again in a quieter, but more sinister tone.

Raising an eyebrow, Cloud simply replied, "Good evening to you too, Sephiroth."

Riku was watching the spectacle with interest, while Sora had fallen off his bed in surprise.

The other roommate didn't seem to find Cloud's nonchalant response satisfactory. "Do you know _how_ I'm going to kill you?" Sephiroth hissed. Cloud returned his eyes to his magazine and smiled slightly as if the words were more of a comfort to him than a threat. But Sephiroth continued by going into explicit detail that shouldn't be mentioned. "...then I'll cut off your limbs, put them into a blender, and feed it to your girlfriend through a bendy straw!"

Cloud flipped a page of his magazine. "Feel free to try."

Sephiroth turned a light shade of crimson as if Cloud had been stringing him along, just to end with that very statement. "No. I already have detention." He sneered while saying this in a way that was reminiscent of every Hollywood bad-guy Sora had ever seen. He whipped around, "accidentally" smacking Cloud in the face with his wet hair.

Cloud smiled maniacally. "As you're here, dear Sephy, is there anything you wanna say?"

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow. "Did I mention that I hate you?"

"Yes," Cloud said. "Every day of my life. But by now I've come to expect it."

Sephiroth slammed the washroom door. "GOOD! I HOPE THOSE WORDS ECHO THROUGHOUT YOUR SKULL FOR THE REST OF YOUR DAMNED EXISTANCE!"

"You too, Sephy-_kun_," Cloud said in a sugary-sweet voice, then flicked off the door. Riku smiled slightly.

"I think I'm going to like it here," Riku coughed.

"D-do you think he even knows we're here?" Sora asked, after climbing back onto his bed. "I think he was too enraged to notice…"

Riku shrugged and took a daring step into the dirty half of the room. "I happened to notice that your roommate makes a lot of empty threats. For all the death threats he makes, he hasn't...murdered you yet."

The blond laughed. "I'm sure he's tried."

"And," Riku said, turning to Sora and winking, "I'm pretty sure Leon told us that we weren't supposed to have girls in the room." Sora's eyes grew wide.

A noise that sounded suspiciously like glass being broken over the sink reached their ears. "Are you begging for an early death?" the menacing voice shrieked. "I have ears!"

Riku flinched knowing that soon enough he would be the one receiving the empty threats.

Sora sighed and plopped back onto the bed that he was presently ceased to be on. "Why don't you ever two every duke it out? You know, settle it once and for all?" said Sora as he twiddled his chain crown necklace.

Cloud's eyebrows rose once, as he shrugged as if he hadn't really thought about it too much.

"I'm SEED('Student Educational Environmental Director' he added rather quickly) for the school which unfortunately includes Sephiroth, and apparently supposed to set a good example for everybody. So if Sephiroth wanted to start something (which he does anyway) or I for that matter, we still wouldn't even shake our pretty little heads at such a thought. We'd be out of this school and on a plane for another boarding school in only a matter of seconds."

The enraged roommate they now knew to be Sephiroth reappeared from the washroom, this time fully clothed, but still steaming like a kettle. Making a b-line for his blond-haired aggravator, he snatched the magazine out of his hands and tore it in two. Obviously no longer having something to hide behind, Cloud jumped to his feet, and…well, the conflict began.

Riku shuddered at the sounds of Sephiroth and Cloud's bickering, so he and Sora talked their ways into small oasis. This new roommate of theirs, was quite the 'character', which was the most civil way they could think of to say he was completely out of his mind. Riku was swung around only top find himself face to face with a nostril flaring angel of death whose eyes screamed 'You're in my personal BUBBLE!'.

"Let's get this straight pretty boy," said Sephiroth as he rather rudely pressed his index finger to Riku's forehead, "You stay on your quarter of this room, and if I see one spec of dust on this floor, there will be consequences."

"You're more of a pretty boy than I am dumbass!" yelled Riku as he flung Sephiroth's hand from his head.

"What did you say...Jap?" said Sephiroth with a insidious smile. Riku just about exploded.

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME, YOU AMERICAN HILLBILLY WOMAN!"

The woman comment didn't sit well with Sephiroth.

His eyes grew rather narrow as he lashed out and began to beat Riku's head in (with a pillow, seeing at how he'd never see the light of day again, though in general he wouldn't really care, had he used his blade, as he intended to).

Cloud sprang to and confiscated the rather feathery pillow from his roommate. "You idiot! Do you _want_ to get expelled!" He threw the pillow to his 'dirty' quarter of the room where it was immediately swallowed.

Sephiroth cringed and looked particularly maddened, "You know what Strife? There are times when I think it might actually be WORTH IT!" He screamed as the temperature of the room fell slightly.

Cloud blinked several times displaying a delayed reaction. "Fine then," Cloud said as he walked over to the small coffee table on Riku's quarter and grabbed the phone. "If that's really what you think...916-"

Sephiroth's eyes widened considerably "NO!" He dove in for the phone, missing as cloud moved out of the way just in time. "Please, don't!" Sephiroth looked like he was having an inner struggle, contemplating his next choice of words. " I'll, I'll beg..."

Cloud suddenly had that evil look he had been working toward for awhile now. "Okay, fine, beg..."

The other cringed as he slowly rose from the ground. He definitely had no intention of begging any time soon.

"I _said_ beg!" yelled Cloud smirking.

"Fine! Please, please...pretty please! Put down...the phone..." Sephiroth said bowing lower, and lower to the ground. He would never hear the end of this.

Cloud smiled maliciously and placed the phone on the hook. However, Sephiroth was two steps ahead when he reached out like lightening and ripped the phone cord from the wall. "Ha! Now you can never turn me in you blonde, evil, SEED you!" laughed Sephiroth, taking a victorious pose while he cackled in a way that made Riku suspect that he enjoyed tying young women to train tracks.

Cloud shrugged and turned, pulling out his rather small cell phone and dialing the head master's office.

"NO! Don't! I beg of you!" screeched Sephiroth, as he fell to the ground begging like a dog.

Riku and Sora watched from afar as Sephiroth reached up trying to grab the cell from Cloud as he glared down at the evil angel.

"I'll do anything I swear! Just don't call Ansem! No!"

It was obvious that Sephiroth shared Riku's irrational fear of school officials.

Cloud tapped his fingers on his teeth , pondering the torture he could inflict. "Depends my _dear_ Sephiroth," he said. "How much are you willing to trade for your freedom. Its come at a very high cost."

Riku snickered under his breath. Sora wondered how far both of them would take this.

"Anything!"

Cloud pondered on this for a moment. "Anything you say?" he said as his natural ability to torture poor Sephy came into full throttle. "You know what you have too do…" he winked. "Involving the fuzzy handcuffs and the lotion."

Riku and Sora coughed loudly, their eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. For a moment, Sephiroth mimicked their expressions, but that all changed when his face darkened considerably and a thin, but definitely suspicious, smirk laced his lips.

A maniacal plan began to form in Sephiroth's mind. "Fine," Sephiroth whispered seductively.

It was Cloud's turn to bug out.

"What!" Cloud coughed. "I was _kidding_!"

That only made the smirk grow wider. Sephiroth got up from his begging on the floor, walking around the other side of the blond and hugging him around the waist. "And then I can tell the _whole damn_ _school_ that 'cloudy-chan' is my boyfriend!"

"No! They'll never believe you!" Cloud stuttered, beginning to look very uncomfortable.

Sephiroth shrugged. "I have two witnesses, cloud dearest," Sephiroth said glancing over at Riku and Sora. Damn, he'd noticed them after all.

"Fine! Fine! You know what? We're even! Cloud exclaimed. "I have dirt on you, you have dirt on me! Happy now?"

"Why yes, yes I am Cloud...We have an agreement of silence, do we not?" Sephiroth said, the same creepy smile gracing his features. "You keep my secret of violence, and I keep your secret of," he seemed to be searching for the appropriate noun. "…queerness."

"I'm not gay," Cloud mumbled, addressing no one in particular. Riku clapped loudly. He had rather enjoyed the show.

"What are you doing? Trying to convince yourself?"

"Shut up Black!"

"Well you didn't deny it!"

"You're gay, Cloud?" a tall figure stepped through the doorway. He raised an eyebrow over crimson eyes. Cloud looked almost mortified.

"No, Vince, I'm as strait as a line," Cloud said coughing. "A very, very strait line."

"Only if you took said straight line and bent it over a chair, sure Strife," Sephiroth said, inspecting Riku very closely, as if scanning for a foreign disease. "Hey pretty boy, you need a shower, or wash your cloths, or both if you please".

Vincent rolled his eyes. "Anyway, Cloud, Sephiroth, people I don't know, lights out in five," he paused. "By the way Sephiroth, you've got something on your shirt". With that, Vincent walked down the hall.

Cloud smiled. "See, too many neat freaks?"

"LIGHTS OUT, OR I'LL _PUT_ YOUR LIGHTS OUT!" Everyone flinched.

* * *

Sora rolled over in his bed, unable to sleep for a number of reasons. "Would someone tell him to put his light out?" Sora whined.

"Sephiroth...shut off your PS2," Cloud yawned.

"No."

"NOW."

"I just have to beat the Phantom!" Sephiroth said, his fingers hitting the buttons continuously, the small key-wielding boy on the screen sparkling and flying around a grim-reaper like boss.

"I'm sure Ansem would love too hear how you've been playing Kingdom Hearts for over an hour," Cloud threatened.

"Fine," Sephiroth sneered, resisting the urge to chuck the game controller at any of his roommates. "Just ruin my fun."

"Goodnight Sora," Cloud yawned.

"Night!"

"Goodnight Riku"

"I'm talking in my sleep, don't mind me."

"Goodnight Sephiroth."

"I'll get you when you least expect it."

"Night Sephy-kun," Riku sneered.

"Consequences, pretty boy, consequences…"

"SPEED DIAL BLACK, SPEED DIAL!"

Throughout the castle, a cacophony of disturbing noises erupted.

"Don't you dare!"

"Oh I wou- put that sword away!"

Someone screamed bloody murder, but the rest of castle, each person recognized the sound groggily and went back to bed. It was only the nightly routine after all.

* * *

OMG! I luv all my reviewers! weeps like she won a grammy

Revlis: here's that update. Um, thanks, I happen to like the way a portrayed Ansem, so I'm glad to hear someone else liked it too!

Anthroprincess: Well, all that bugging me worked. Here's your update! mumble, mumble Thanx...

Chaz: Thanx so much! I'm glad to hear it makes you laugh. If that last chapter was funny, than you must have split your sides on this one. What a great compliment...you make me feel like JK Rowling or something. Blah. Hehehe.

Stealth Wolf: Yay! You got an account! Its nice to know I "rule". I'm getting so many compliments! starts to cry from sheer happiness

Hanako: Well, the answer to your question was in this chappy. Oh, Cloud is "Partially

mechanical" because (edit: this was changed recently so that it slips on and off) because in KH he had that metal claw, which oddly resembles a claw belonging to FF7's Vincent Valentine.

Leann-chan: Thank you. I hoped you liked the Ansem part.

EpitaphDragoness: It takes 239 licks to get to the tootsie roll center of a tootsie pop! Oo My cousin knows too. I tried once, but ended up biting. Arigato.

DragonRose13: back! Crazy Squall Fangirl! Thanx, I think you might like this chapter...with your mind and all.

Thekatgrl: nods head cloud is there to be loved.

CLOUD-FANATIK88- whoa...slow down. Um, I don't think I'll pair Cloud and Leon...I've never actually seen THAT pairing before... ;. It will be Shounen Ai tho. I have many plans...Mwahahaha! (Edit: okay, so I've seen CxL now…XD)

**This chapter has been edited, and reposted, due to a certain author's inability to use good grammar. There has been no change in the story plot, so for those of you that have read this chapter before, there really isn't anything different about it, except for the correction of some errors and a couple of lines added.**


	5. Rivalry and the Idiot's Duel

Sorry I haven't updated in a while, to busy with end of the year projects. This chapter is a doosy, REALLY long. Its one of those chapters that isn't that interesting, but you have to get it over with anyway to go on to the next part. But I tried to make it as enjoyable as possible! Oh before I forget: ANTHROPRINCESS HELPED ME WITH THE LAST CHAPTER. She would like everyone to know that the SPEED DIAL was her idea. OKAY, on with the show...  
  
Tetsuya Namora was walking down the street when all of a sudden he was shoved into a dark street corner. No one ever saw him again.  
----------------------------------  
Chapter 5- Rivalry and the Idiots Duel  
  
Sora awoke the next to a shrill ringing piercing the air, pretty close to his ears. He screeched, clutching his ears of his. Jumping to his feet, that were still tangled in the blankets, he fell off his bed for the third time in two days. Sora peered up from his position on the floor, glaring at Cloud's alarm clock that cruelly assaulted his eardrums. "CLOUDSHUTTHATTHINGOFF!!" Sora yelled incoherently. And yet the blond still slept soundly, burying his face into the pillow, making cute squeaking noises.  
  
"Don't wake him up, it makes for good blackmail," Sephiroth was already up, straitening the tie on his uniform. He was sickeningly awake for this hour of the morning.  
  
"But he'll be late for class!" Sora said, pouting. Sephiroth shrugged.  
  
"That, is not my problem" he paused and grinned evilly. "I have a feeling that will have a visitor, a scary visitor, who finds the obligation...to wake Strife every morning" He snickered glancing at his watch. "Six-five-four-three-two-one".  
  
"CLOUDY-KUN!!" and as quick as lightening, barely seeable, a bouncy teen bounced her way on the end of Cloud's bed. "Wakey Wakey! If you don't get up Sephy will blackmail you...again!" She held a plate out in front of her face. "I brought you some breakfast, cause I know you'll miss it, if things persist like this!"  
  
Cloud moaned, rolling over. Ryoshu rolled her eyes. "Common, you know what will happen if you don't!" Not seeming to care, Cloud remained in his bed.  
  
"You don't seem to care do you?" She sighed, stating the obvious. Sephiroth sat on Sora's bed, watching out of routine. As usual, a smirk crossed his lips.  
  
"I hope you came up with something unique today, Ryoshu"  
  
"Yes," she said smiling. "Of course. It would be a shame to disappoint his 'royal highness', depriving him of his morning entertainment" Ryoshu's voiced dripped with sarcasm. "Cloud-kun, I will give you till the count of three, before I start 'Routine Wake-up procedure', if you would like to spare yourself...one...two...three!"  
  
With that Ryoshu stuck her finger in her mouth, then quickly jabbed it in his ear. For an actual moment, it looked like Cloud might have woken from his deep slumber. Instead he whimpered slightly, making some people wonder what was going on in his dreamy state of mind.  
  
"Hmm, that didn't work. Plan B!" Ryoshu pointed at Sephiroth. "I have a plan"  
  
"Yes?" Sephiroth leaned forward on his elbows. "And what exactly are you enlisting my help for?"  
  
Ryoshu tapped her fingers together evilly. "I just need you to carry Cloudy-kun for me"  
  
"Do I even want to know?" Sephiroth asked, quirking an eyebrow.  
  
"You'll find out soon enough. Just do what I say and carry him"  
  
Sephiroth shrugged. "Fine. But I still don't follow" Sephiroth picked up sleeping beauty under his knees, resisting the urge to sneeze as a strand of the boy's feathery hair brushed by his nose. Unfortunately, resistance is futile.  
  
"Achoo!" Sephiroth let off a surprisingly squeaky sneeze for such his overpowering demeanor. Everything in the room seemed to freeze. If Cloud woke up now, it would ruin the element of surprise, not to mention what Cloud might think if he realized that he was being held by his arch enemy. Imagine the chaos.  
  
Cloud began to stir and everyone held their breath. But, he simply shifted and his head lolled back against Sephiroth's shoulder. At that moment, everyone exhaled. "He sleeps like a freakin rock!" Sora whispered loudly. (oxymoron! XD)  
  
Ryoshu pointed toward the bathroom door mouthing something along the lines of "in there". Sephiroth complied and Sora decided, although it probably wasn't in his best interest, he should watch anyway. Smiling maniacally, Sephiroth began to understand Ryoshu's plot. "And so the great Sephiroth, last of the Centra race, finds the perfect way to execute his revenge," he announced, as if reading third-person text. Sephiroth laid the poor unwakable blonde in the basin of the shower, while Ryoshu turned the lever on the wall to a letter that said "C". "May I?" Sephiroth asked.  
  
"Of course," Ryoshu replied, stepping out of the way. Ryoshu looked regretful for a moment. "Sorry Cloudy-kun, but this was the only way".  
  
Grinning like a madman on pot, Sephiroth quickly turned the knob on the shower wall, so the water came pouring out.  
  
Seconds later, an inhuman scream, one that made Cloud's alarm clock seem like the chirping of birds, echoed throughout that level of the castle. "C-COLD!!" Ryoshu, Sora, and Sephiroth briskly walked out of the bathroom. Followed by Cloud Strife, whose wet cloths were dripping on the carpet. "Thanks Ryo," he mumbled.  
  
Ryoshu smiled. "Anytime Cloudy-kun". Cloud mumbled something about 'sarcasm' under his breath, then began pick out his cloths.  
  
As a reaction to the tremendous amount of noise, Riku sat up in bed, finally waking up. "W-wher'es the fire...?" he mumbled stupidly. Ryoshu, took one look in Riku's direction and stifled her laughter.  
  
"In your hair," she giggled.  
  
"What?" Riku asked. "What are you talking about?"  
  
Sephiroth found this an opportune moment to leave the room for breakfast. Ryoshu decided to follow him as well. Being in one room with two people that Sephiroth had gotten his revenge on was just not good for your health. "What are they talking about, Sora," Riku was looking like the face of death itself as her glared. "And I expect to know the truth".  
  
Sora, unlike most times, was scared out of his wits entirely. "R- riku, why d-don't you just l-look for y-yourself".  
  
"I will," he got out of bed, and made a bee-line for the next possible mirror. Carefully Sora shuffled up next to him. Calmly, Riku inspected his hair.  
  
"So, what's the diagnosis Dr. Riku?" Sora asked, just a little amused at the fact that someone had actually pulled a prank on his best friend. Riku the jester, Riku the King of Practical Jokes.  
  
"Well," Riku sighed. "From experience, I'd say that the orange paint will come out with a shower. But the red paint, will be there for at least a week" Riku stepped away from the mirror. "I'm gonna go take a shower kay?"  
  
"You're not mad?" Sora asked. Of course not. He should have known better.  
  
Riku shook his head. "Don't be stupid, Sora. You know what I always say..."  
  
"Kill the Pharaoh?" Sora asked raising an eyebrow.  
  
Riku smiled. "The other saying. Don't get mad, get even".  
-------------------------------  
While Riku decided to rid himself of orange paint, Sora ventured downstairs to the common area, were people were eating breakfast. The room was loud and congested, with talk from gossip to politics. 'First days really suck,' Sora thought. 'You don't know anyone, and you're totally lost'. Then he saw someone waving at him.  
  
"HEY! New kid!" they shouted. Soar instantly recognized the voice that he had heard just that morning, Ryoshu.  
  
Soar approached the table. "Hi," he said. "Can I sit here?" Ryoshu nodded her head eagerly.  
  
"Sure, if you don't mind a dumb-ass bunch of outcasts like us!"  
  
"Hey, Ryo, speak for yourself," said a giggly voice, that Sora could have sworn he'd heard before. Actually, he knew he had heard it before. He craned his neck so he could see.  
  
'Shit!' he thought, as he spotted the certain brown-haired girl. 'I- its Selphie!' Quickly, he ducked under the table, as not to be seen. But not quick enough.  
  
"Sora! Is that you?!" Selphie squealed girlishly. "Omigosh, I haven't seen you in like forever!" She captured him in an inescapable hug/death grip.  
  
"Sel...phie...need...air," Sora gasped, trying to pry the bouncy-child-of- death's arms off his neck.  
  
"Sorry!" She replied, dropping poor Sora to the floor with a sheepish smile. "I haven't seen you since sixth grade! I mean, I almost didn't recognize you cause you're not short anymore!"  
  
"Yep, restraining orders work wonders don't they?" Sora mumbled under his breath. "Jeez, I wonder why everyone wanted you to leave?" he said loudly.  
  
"I know!" she shrieked. "Why did they sign the petition, to kick me outta Destiny Elementary!" A scary type of flames twinkled in her eyes. "I mean, like I talk too much! Whatever!"  
  
"Seriously though," Sora rolled his eyes as Selphie began to talk about whatever came into her mind.  
  
"So you and Selphie know eachother?" a red-haired girl said, finding a reason to strike up a conversation.  
  
Sora picked out an orange out of a bowl and began to peel it. "Yeah, unfortunately. She talks like a furby on energizer batteries".  
  
She giggled slightly. "You look familiar, have I met you before?"  
  
"Um," Sora took the time to look at her. She looked familiar too, except he had a feeling that the last time they had met, it hadn't been a pleasant experience. "I don't know"  
  
She smiled again. "Anyway, I'm Kairi"  
  
Sora grinned. Things were going well. "Kairi, that's a nice name. I'm So-  
  
Kairi shot out of her seat like the school was on fire, which could have happened. Her eyes pasted themselves onto two boys in the corner, laughing like mad. The she looked as furious as a raging dragon as she stomped over to them, pulling a note-pad and a pencil out of her bag. "TIDUS! WAKKA! Forks are not for sticking in toasters!!"  
  
"Crap! It's Kairi, ya!" one of them yelled, and both of them bolted out into the hall, leaving Kairi in their dust.  
  
Sora had a habit of falling out of his bed, when he was startled, so what difference does it make if he falls out of his chair instead? Blinking slightly, he had finally remembered where he had seen Kairi from before...  
  
---flashback---  
  
_"STOP RIGHT THERE!" said an unfamiliar voice, but a familiar tone. A reprimanding tone, that Sora got whenever he was with Riku.  
  
A girl stood in front of them with a notepad and pen behind her ear, glaring as if to say "how dare you!" Wagging her finger back and forth she said. "Running in the halls is not allowed".  
  
Riku frowned and tried to move past her, but she stepped in his was. Riku smirked. "And who are you to tell me so?"  
  
She looked at Riku like he was some type of lunatic, shaking her short red hair back and forth. "For your information, I am a SeED: Student, Edu-  
  
"Yeah, you're a hall monitor, I got it," Riku said. "Let's go Sora" eh said yanking Sora's hand, and sprinting up the stairs.  
  
"Wait!" The girl shrieked. "I have to take down your names!"  
  
"Sorry!" Sora yelled back. "It won't happen again!" Riku yanked his hand harder.  
  
"You're such a kiss-up Sora".  
_  
---end flashback---  
  
Kairi scowled, coming back to her seat. "I'm sorry about those two idiots, what where you saying?" she asked, extending a hand to help Sora off of the floor.  
  
He took her hand, careful not to tip the pixie girl over. "Oh, just that my names Sora, and that I never want to see that side of Kairi ever again..." he said, quite nervous.  
  
"Well, you'll never have to," she said letting a smile slowly ease back onto her face," unless, you make trouble?"  
  
"No, no, of course not," Sora lied quickly, quickly stuffing a piece of orange in his mouth, he figured, before he could say anything stupid.  
  
Kairi nodded her head, smiling again. "That's good to hear" A group of giggling girls suddenly let out a loud squeal. Even Selphie quit her incoherent chattering, to look up.  
  
"Omigosh, he's so hott"  
  
"Totally, like Orlando Bloom"  
  
"Dude, no one's prettier than Orli...shit, he is!"  
  
Sora rolled his eyes as he turned his head. Who could possibly be... "Riku!"  
  
Kairi turned around, but only she scowled, as a dark look of utter loathing settled in her eyes. "It's HIM".  
  
"Huh?" Sora said confused until he realized. Riku had made a very bad first impression with Kairi. "Kairi, Riku really isn't that bad, you know. Just calm down" Luckily, she hadn't remembered him from that little incident.  
  
"Trouble maker, on his first day, idiot, arrogant, sonova..." Sora clamped his hand over her mouth as Riku drew near.  
  
"Hey, Sora," Riku said lazily, his silver mane still wet from his shower. Pointing to his hair he said, "See? No orange".  
  
Sora laughed. "I see that". Kairi huffed, probably sticking to idiot theory, especially since he had mumbled something totally random, as far as she knew.  
  
Riku looked over the table, and its audience of giddy fan-girls, along with Selphie (at which his eyes widened considerably), and Kairi who rolled her eyes. "Make any friends?" The question seemed generic enough, although he was gaze was piercing Kairi like knives.  
  
Sora nodded, not noticing the look on Riku's face, nor Kairi's. "Yeah, this is Kairi".  
  
"Hi, I'm Riku. I'm Sora's best friend," Riku said, a small look of triumph glittered his eyes. He extended his hand to shake hers.  
  
She gripped his hand roughly, squeezing it like a python. "Well...Riku," Kairi said, putting on the façade of friendliness, "It was a pleasure, to finally meet you in person" and she let go of his hand promptly and waltzed out the door.  
  
'Oh, yeah. It's on now,' Riku thought rubbing his fingers. 'Nasty skank'  
  
"Riku?" Sora said.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"You'd better eat, we have Sparring class soon"  
  
Riku picked up a piece of toast and quickly scarfed it. "Oh, joy," Riku coughed sarcastically with his mouth half full. "To spend an hour with Squallie, the human glacier and get both mentally and physically abused".  
------------------------  
"Wake up," Squall snapped. Riku's head snapped up, from his slumber...in the middle of Squall Leonhart's sparring class. "Tired?" he asked sarcastically. "Cause I'm sure there's nap time at the Kindergarten down the street". Riku glared at him.  
  
"I wasn't sleeping" he hissed, obviously lying badly.  
  
"Really now, so you were snoring loudly on purpose," Squall said with a simpering smile. "So squirt, tell me what exactly evolving weapons are"  
  
"Weapons that evolve, duh," Riku said smirking, like he was talking the teacher in circles.  
  
"I believe the rest of us are aware of that. Why is it important that summon weapons are also evolving weapons?" Squall said, trying to pry a more specific answer from his new student.  
  
Riku smiled. "So that you don't have an unevolving weapon, duh"  
  
Squall Leonhart sighed exasperatingly. "I've had about enough out of you Riku'.  
  
"Really?" Riku said, cocking his head to one side. "I've only just started"  
  
Sora kicked Riku in the back, hissing. "Ontday ebay tupidsay" (XD Piglatin!)  
  
Rubbing his temples out of frustration Squall slowly and forcingly said through clenched teeth, "Riku, answer my questions the right way, or a visit with Ansem can be arranged".  
  
Riku remained silent, for this time, he amazingly had no smart comment this time.  
  
Squall turned around, retaking his position at the front of the classroom. "Like I said, don't sleep in my class". Tapping his fingers on the desk he spun around again. "Back to the lesson. Today we will be practicing with our summon weapons, evolving them maybe, but practicing battles accurately. Have you two ever summoned before?" Riku nodded, but Sora just stared at the ground shaking his head.  
  
'That's okay," Squall said. "You can catch up". That didn't make Sora feel any better. Cause he knew he was one of those helpless cases anyway. "Alright, we need a demonstration. How bout our best students? Cloud, Sephiroth, get your asses up here"  
  
The blonde rose from the ground first, crouching in an offensive position. Sephiroth soon followed, but there was a noticeable difference in the way the two acted. Cloud's face was set in determination, ready and alert, while Sephiroth seemed cool and collected. It was like God had put the switch on those two.  
  
"Let's do this," Cloud said seriously, almost completely out of character compared to outside of class.  
  
"Of course, but only if you can make it worth my time this time, Strife," Sephiroth said calmly, smirking slightly. "But, have you really gotten any better?"  
  
Cloud looked absolutely furious. He hated being taunted, and of course it was the equal and opposite effect of how he treated the evil angel outside of class, but...you know, it sucks. "Cut the crap".  
  
"On my count," Squall said, "bring forth your summon weapon" He turned to Riku and Sora. "The trick is, will you summon quickly and attack immediately, or will you take the time to mentally sharpen and buff it well, its part of a strategy" Then he reverted his attention back to the two opponents. "One...two...three"  
  
Cloud was the first to move, his weapon suddenly materializing in his hands. Sora found it amazing that Cloud didn't tip over. His weapon was huge; a rather large broadsword that was about two thirds his height. Clouds "get-out-of-my-face-or-I'll-bite-your-head-off" glare looked quite as deadly as his sword. "Whoo! Looking good!" Ryoshu shrieked, along with some other Cloud fan-girls.  
  
Rolling his eyes, Sephiroth held out one hand and his sword materialized as well. There was only a slight difference that might suggest his fighting style. His sword was oversized as well, but in another way. It was like that of a samurai, forged long-style, and with steal extremely, extremely...sharp. "You too Seph!"  
  
"Whose side are you on exactly?" Riku whispered. Ryoshu shrugged.  
  
"I'm a bit of a mediator, guess, it's way to hard to pick sides," Ryoshu looked up. "Look! It's a stand still!"  
  
Both Cloud and Sephiroth weren't moving, even blinking, not braking eye contact.  
  
"What are they doing?" Sora asked, completely oblivious of any tactics, besides the ones he used while sparring with Riku on Play Island, in which his butt was kicked in a repetitive fashion.  
  
"Waiting," Riku explained while watching the opponents like some kind of sick football game. "To see who will make the first move"  
  
The tension was so thick you could cut it with a keyblade, but fortunately a buster blade sliced it first. Jumping high into the air, Cloud prepared to deliver a sharp blow to his rival, but came down only to meet empty air. "What the..."  
  
"Surprise, surprise, you missed me by a mile Strife, by a mile," the voice said horribly teasing. The tone in his voice sounded so familiar to Sora, and it was then he realized. It was the same tone that Cloud had been using when Sephiroth was completely at his mercy. Except, for fallen angels, mercy is undeliverable.  
  
Cloud spun around, just in time to meet the offending blade with accuracy. He jumped back, putting space between them. Sephiroth smiled, experienced in getting into the heads of his enemies. "Well now. Aren't you going to come and get me?" The smile darkened wickedly. "Or should I get you first?"  
  
"This isn't a horror movie drama queen, shut up," Cloud said threateningly.  
  
"If that's the way you want it". Sephiroth kicked off the back wall, building speed. Cloud rushed to, and prepared to hear the metallic cling of swords, but it never came. Sephiroth stuck one foot to the ground skidding to a stop on the left, but Cloud realized his mistake too late. As he passed Sephiroth he skidded to a stop also, and hoped to any deity, that Sephiroth would be moving slower than usual, trying to turn around, knowing that he would soon be feeling a sharp pain through his stomach.  
  
Sephiroth's movements were like lightning as he used his sneak attack position to leave a long gash on the top of Clouds shoulder. His opponent muffled his hiss of pain, reaching to his shoulder to inspect the damage.  
  
"K.O., the match is over," Squall said. He jabbed his thumb in the direction of the locker rooms. "Sephiroth, you know the drill". Sephiroth nodded, hoisting the defeated Cloud up by his uninjured arm, and leading him to a bench. "At this school, if you have pride enough to win, you have pride enough to have respect for the fallen. After the match, you heal your sparring partner. Being a good sport is key".  
  
Sora nodded, understanding. It was fair treatment.  
  
"Now," Squall continued, "I'll break you off into pairs and you will practice, and please, PLEASE, refrain from spell-casting". A gurgled bunch of replies broke forth, but for the most part, every one assumed it was an understanding. Squall read off his list of pairings and everyone broke off. Then he found his newest students still sitting down. "Hey," he said. "You two aren't on the attendance sheet yet, so for today, you guys'll be partners, alright?" It may have been phrased as a question, but it was more like "You're partners. Don't like it, then DEAL!" Sora and Riku got up to go to a separate space, but Squall caught Sora by his arm, almost making the poor boy get whiplash. "Didn't you say that you don't know how to summon right?"  
  
"...yes," Sora said blinking.  
  
"Then we'll have to teach you, now won't we," Squall said. Riku nodded.  
  
"Squallie's right, I help too".  
  
Squall glared. "That's Leon, punk, I don't think he needs any help from you"  
  
"Fine then! I won't!"  
  
"Close your eyes, Sora," Squall commanded. Sora obeyed. "Mmmkay, now what?"  
  
"Okay, concentrate," Squall said. "You need to think, except differently. It's like thinking with your heart. You have to think of things, that make you happy, that make you strong" It was weird to hear Squall talk like this. It was like her was searching for words to explain it. "Think of what exactly you are fighting for".  
  
Sora nodded, trying to think of whatever he was trying to think of. It was their somewhere deep in his mind, but he couldn't quite get it to surface. He opened his eyes. "I got nothing" Sora said staring at his empty palm.  
  
"Common Sora, I thought you were better than that"  
  
Sora lifted his head. "Riku?"  
  
Riku blinked. "What? Did I say something wrong?"  
  
"Riku," Sora repeated. "That's it..." Sora jumped to his feet, hugging the silver haired boy tightly. "Riku, you're a freakin genius!"  
  
Blushing slightly, Riku managed to pry Sora away from him. "I know...but why am I a genius again?" he asked smiling cheekily.  
  
Sora smiled, closing his eyes again. 'What makes me the most happy is...' A blinding light emitted around the boy, making people around him stare. As soon as light faded, a goofy expression played itself upon Sora's face. "Hey, Riku, watchu think?"  
  
Sora's summon weapon was quite peculiar, one of a kind actually.  
  
"What the hell?" Sephiroth said. "Is that...?"  
  
"Well," Squall said raising an eyebrow. "It looks like we have a keyblade master".  
  
-----------------  
  
EpitaphDragoness: Thank you! I luv Sephiroth, and making him a maniacal spaz was just my style! hug  
  
Camigirl4k3: clutches her face oh my! THAAANNKKK YYYOUUU!!! As for Cloud's sexual preference, only time will tell.   
  
DragonRose13: whoa. Don't have an ulcer! Lol. Anyhoo, nice to see you laughing that hard. Hey, I don't think we can go to that Fanime Convention, but we're trying to get to AnimeExpo, down by LA!   
  
Smiley-chan: -- Anthro, sign in under my name again and feel my wrath. I hope yur happy.  
  
Anthroprincess: ahh, leave my ficcy alone!! You got your credit!  
  
Tyson FoxFlame: ; cloud fangirl. Thanx! takes a bite out of choco rose  
  
Vash-lover323: huggles spiffy and coolio award Yay!  
  
CLOUD-FANATIK88: no worries! I love Shounen Ai, but no Cloud Leon...grins manically  
  
Stealth Wolf: Yay! I the best huh? U so nice, eh?  
  
Saesama: You reviewed for my fic! Kewl!! Update For Whom the bell Tolls soon, kay?  
  
MysticKitty17: Double review! Way kewl...speed dial is very effective!  
  
Marissa: I KNOW ALREADY!!  
  
Riyoji Jeremishou: ; I've never heard a fanfic be called "pretty" before, but okay...sorry, no Ansem in this chappy, I'll try for later chapters, k? 


	6. Face it and Deal

Hi guys. Yes, this is an update. Sorry it took so long!! I'm being pulled in several different directions. My cousin and her friends want me to update my Inuyasha ficcy, my friend (anthroprincess) wants me to write my half of our KH spin-off (hearts-oblivion at deviantart), I feel compelled to update my other KH CloudSeph ficlet, and then there is THIS one. I have to say, this is the most fun to write, but it takes me forever just to sit down and do it. Besides all this, me mum is making me work outside, in the blistering heat, for several hours a day...it sucks. But I try to update, but then again, its hard. I procrastinate, and I am good at it.  
  
Disclaimer: ...no, really?

....................................

Chapter 6: Face it and Deal  
  
Sora blinked slowly. All of a sudden it occurred to him the mere stupidity of the fact that his own summon weapon was nothing but a giant key. He felt like his crumbling to a point of no return. From this he concluded that he had been doped. "What kind of sick joke is this?!" He felt infuriated, that he, whose life couldn't have possibly been any more screwed up, had just hit rock bottom. "What kind of weapon is THIS? It's a freakin key!"  
  
Sephiroth scowled, wringing out the damp towel in his hands with force. "The least you can do is not insult it," he hissed. "The mere fact that someone like _you_ could receive such a weapon, makes me think that the worlds gone to the dogs". His eyes spat venom, and spoke volumes. Obviously he thought Sora was unworthy to lick his shoes.  
  
"He's just jealous Sora," Cloud said, wincing slightly as his wound cleaning became a little more forceful. "You don't have to take that! Kick 'is butt!"  
  
Sora coughed, bringing up small teardrops. "Beat...Sephiroth? Nah, thatsokay! I'm good".  
  
"Yeah kid, so him whose boss," said a perky girl with short black hair. "The keyblade chose you!"  
  
Sephiroth simply rolled his eyes, finishing off his chore by casting Curaga on Cloud's shoulder. "Yes. Sure. 'Beat me' if you think you can". His gaze shifted over to the newly appointed keyblade master. Taking long strides across the room, his lips curled themselves into a taunting smirk, and deep inside those emerald eyes was a challenge, just for the boy with the key.  
  
"I'm...I'm not afraid of you," Sora managed to force out, gripping the kilt of the keyblade tightly.  
  
Sephiroth's smile grew wider, slipping his fingers under the boy's chin tilting it upwards, so that he couldn't look away. "You could have fooled me", he said before the bell that releases students to their next hell session rang. "Try again," he said walking out the door calmly. Sora released the breathe he hadn't realized he was holding.  
  
"Stupid. Stupid. Stupid," Sora repeated as he banged his head against the wall over and over again. "I need to learn how to shut up!" he moaned, as the keyblade, disappeared slowly, only waiting for the next time it would serve a purpose.  
  
-----------------  
  
"And that children is why the x variable is undefined"  
  
Riku felt himself nodding off again. If he thought sparring class was bad, Algebra was the seventh hell. Even Sora, who's math skills rivaled many, could feel his conciousness slipping away. Some, had already fallen into the deep slumber, such as the boy Tidus and the black haired girl from sparring class, Yuffie.  
  
"Your assignment for today is pg. 731 1-63 odds," Mrs. Jenova finished. "Questions?"  
  
Sora raised his hand. "Yes?"  
  
"Could you possibly just, I don't know, teach that whole thing over again?" Sora said stifling the yawn he felt coming.  
  
"Were you not paying any attention?" Mrs. Jenova sighed impatiently, tapping her fingers hysterically.  
  
"Yeah, but it was all a blur," he said, telling the truth. He hadn't understood a word that had come out of his teacher's mouth.  
  
"Mr. Black, would you mind showing your new classmate how to do this lesson," Mrs. Jenova said in an exasperated voice. She obviously had very little patience for slacker, unless of course it was one of her class pets. "Sephiroth," she said a little more sternly.  
  
Sephiroth's head snapped up from the surface of his desk. "...Wha...huh...? What did I miss?" he mumbled, his eyes still half-lidded.  
  
"Oh, Sephiroth, didn't you get enough sleep last night?" she asked frowning so deeply, it made you wonder how she managed to keep the wrinkles away.  
  
He shook his head. "My roommates kept me up all night," he said in a tone that just screamed teacher's pet. He threw in an extra yawn for emphasis.  
  
Riku's jaw practically dropped open. "That is a BIG FAT LIE and you know it!" he shrieked jumping from his desk. "If anything YOU kept yourself up with all your 'Oh, goodness, but I have to beat the Phantom Cloud!' stuff"  
  
Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, keeping a strait face. "I have no idea what you're talking about".  
  
Riku mentally cursed the Centra. Besides being a great math and sparring student, he probably excelled in drama.  
  
"You are already DUMB, you don't need to play it!" Riku yelled, kicking the floor.  
  
"Don't yell, pretty boy" Sephiroth commanded smirking. "Didn't anyone ever tell you to use your inside voice, I believe the rest of us learned that in grade school".  
  
Riku huffed, sitting down I his seat before Ms. Jenova could tell him to do so. "Well, at least I wasn't the one sleeping in class..." he mumbled.  
  
Sora raised his hand timidly. "What!" Mrs. Jenova snapped, making him cringe.  
  
"All I needed in the first place was a little help with the lesson!" Sora squeaked.  
  
Behind him, Kairi smiled apologetically, feeling quite sorry for the boy getting verbally abused by their obviously coffee deprived teacher. Once she seemed to have run out of steam, she could hear the snickering of the rest of the class. The truth is, it was funny! Everyone else had gotten a tongue-lashing on their first day of Algebra, except for Sephiroth who had the incredible insight not to irritate her. Some people had a theory the Jenova was actually Sephiroth's mother; both with silver hair, held stiff upper lips, and had tempers like active volcanoes. But both the teacher and student had denied relation in any way.  
  
A few minutes after the barrage of horrible screaming had ended, the teacher had lost her forced engery and told her class that she would be going to the "copy room" and to do their lesson's while they she was gone. The silence of the students lasted for a grand total of two seconds.  
  
The whole class burst into converstation about one thing or another. Schools are the same everywhere. Sora pouted slightly. After all that work, he never got his questions answered. Reaching into his desk, he found what had to be his Math book, shiny from lack of use. Scowling slightly, he flipped through the book to the assigned pages. To his eyes it was just a scrabbled bit of numbers and letters. Tapping his pencil, he sighed exasperatingly .  
  
"Hey Kairi?" he asked leaning his head back.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
Sora asked, "Do you have any idea how to do any of this?"  
  
Kairi smiled a bit, taking Sora's text book in her hands, flipping a few pages back. "Tools for life," she answered expertly. "Usually in these books, it will tell you how to work a problem, before they give you the problem set. To me, it always makes more sense than what the teacher tries to tell us," she said winking. "They feed us something that doesn't make any sense until you learn it a different way. And for reference, the answers to the odd numbered problems are the back of the book usually"  
  
"That makes sense," Sora replied, taking his book back. Then he crinkled his nose. "But what if you still don't understand after that?"  
  
Kairi shrugged. "You could always ask Sephiroth"  
  
Even at the slightest mentioning of his name Sephiroth's head craned around and gave the meanest looking sneer that Sora had ever seen. It was like a smirk, glare, and eye twitch all rolled into one look. After the expression that clearly read 'Hell no!', Sephiroth promptly turned his attention back to something that looked suspiciously like balancing his pencil on his nose.  
  
Sora shook his head. "I don't think that's an option," he muttered, hearing a certain silver haired menace snort a conformation. "Guess, I'll just survive some other way"  
  
"I'll help any way I can," Kairi said smiling.  
  
Sora smiled too. "Thanks Kairi"  
  
Further away, Sephiroth began to twitch. The person behind him was constantly snapping his pencils. This was getting way annoying. "Hey pretty- boy"  
  
"I have a name, Shaft," Riku growled, not in a mood to be reckoned with. Slowly but surely the pencil in his hands snapped in two.  
  
Sephiroth raised a delicate eyebrow. "So, I assume this is some sort of anger management?"  
  
"Anger management. No. No. No," he hissed through his teeth, his lips curled into an obviously fake smile. "No, I'm not _angry_ at all..."  
  
"Yeah, sure, and I'm known for my random acts of kindness"  
  
Riku flexed his fingers in and out, controlling the anger that he 'didn't have'. He didn't know why it made him so mad, to watch them. 'Its not like Sora doesn't deserve to make new friends,' Riku thought. 'He deserves the best, but...Kairi. She's not a bad person, I just don't...like her' He sighed, glancing over at Sora who was intently bent over his work, face contorted in concentration. 'No, can't stay mad at that,' he thought chuckling slightly. 'Only that meddling fool, Kiari!' "Mwahahaha" Riku mentally coughed, embarrassed at his sudden evil cackling.  
  
"Pretty boy, one word. Jealousy?"  
  
"No, I'm not jealous" Riku said.  
  
"Uhhuh, sure, keep telling yourself that," Sephiroth chuckled, having nothing better to do than torment the poor kid.  
  
Riku sighed, running his hands through his hair. "But my life would be so much easier if you would stop laying the guilt trip on me. Its not like your not tripping over your own feet every time Cloud speaks to you, like some kind of sick shounen ai manga" he commented smirking.  
  
Sephiroth's snapped out, snatching the collar of Riku's uniform roughly, Riku's feet dangling a good few inches of the ground. There was no joke upon his face, only a glare that almost seeped poison. "Are you suggesting that _I_, would fall for a guy?" he seethed. "Let alone some ignorant, blond _fool_?!" Riku stared blankly, his lips curling into a tiny, almost taunting, smile.  
  
Kairi spared a moment of her conversation with Sora to notice what was going on. She took a stance that might interpret authority in the eyes of some, furrowing her eyebrows together angrily. "Sephiroth! PUT HIM DOWN"  
  
He paid no heed to the SeED's warning, only staring coldly at the boy he only so easily overpowered. "...answer me, now!"  
  
"SEPHIROTH!"  
  
"You stay out of this!" Riku spat, feeling more than a little frustrated at the girl he had met only a day before. "It isn't your problem"  
  
Kairi huffed. No one treated her like that, and got away with it. "Well?" Sephiroth asked, with no room for conversation.  
  
"Well...I wouldn't have _said_ it, if I didn't _mean_ it would I?" Riku sighed exasperatingly, rolling his eyes.  
  
Sephiroth turned an indescribably red color, that went well with the angry and embarrassed expression written on his face. Without a word, he dropped Riku unceremoniously on his butt, and paced out the door, throwing his hands up in the hair like he thought everyone of them were raving lunatics.  
  
"What's his problem?" Riku moaned, rubbing his sore backside.  
  
"Heh," the Tidus kid responded. "I think its cause your challenging him. His authority as cocky idiot is slipping away..."  
  
Riku picked himself up, scowling slightly. "Nah, I think its cause he knows I'm right"  
  
----------  
  
Sephiroth marched down the hall, not caring that he should be in class, and really didn't have anywhere else to go. He was fuming, feeling so angry that steam could have spouted from his ears. He couldn't think strait. All he knew was he wanted to punch something, and punch it hard. This was why didn't notice the person coming until it was too late.  
  
He crashed into the figure, gravity unmercifully pushing him into the gargoyle fountain behind him. Slowly he felt his anger cool into annoyance, the water killing the heated feeling. It would have been okay, the mouth of the gargoyle wasn't continuously spewing water onto his silver tresses. Picking now limp hair out of his eyes, he mumbled,"...just _great_"  
  
"Oh my god! I'm so sorry, I swear I didn't mean to," a small cowering voice shrieked. She looked up through her auburn bangs nervously, collecting the numerous flyers that then had spilled on the ground. "I really wasn't looking where I was going, oh goodness I'm sorry..."  
  
Sephiroth blinked slowly. "Its okay...Aerith is it?". The girl smiled slightly, nodding her head.  
  
"Yeah..." she laughed nervously. "And your Sephiroth, I know. I've heard many...stories about you"  
  
"Assuming that you heard them from Cloud Strife, they're probably true," Sephiroth snickered, wringing out his shirt. Aerith, was one of those people that you meet a couple of times, but remember cause of something that happened. Aerith was Cloud's girlfriend {1}. She had this cute, pure demeanor that calmed people, but got on people's nerves. Simply put, she was preppy to the extreme. You couldn't yell at her without feeling guilty later.  
  
Aerith's smile faded a little. "I see...". Sephiroth twitched slightly. 'WHAT kind of things does he tell this girl?!' "I'm sorry for knocking you over..."  
  
He rolled his eyes, and mumbled a "Whatever". He began walking toward his dorm, since obviously he couldn't go back to class in wet cloths. A smirk crossed his lips. Since his uniform was unbearable, he'd just have to...improvise. 'Free dress day'  
  
"Wait! Sephiroth!" he turned around, as Aerith came running up behind him. "Here," she thrust a small piece of pink folded paper at him. "You should come, it'll be fun" Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, not quite knowing what she was talking about.  
  
"Maybe..." he said.  
  
With that, he spun on his heal and waked off.  
  
------------  
  
"A dance?" Sora asked. The auburn-haired girl nodded.  
  
"Yes, there's a school dance in a week," Aerith said. "So, hurry up and find someone to go with".  
  
Sora nodded. "Hey Riku, you wanna go?"  
  
"W-what?" Riku asked, blushing madly.  
  
Sora rolled his eyes. "Go, not go _with_ me"  
  
"Sora..."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Shutup, everyone's staring"  
  
---------  
  
Sephiroth unfolded the piece of paper as curiosity got the best of him. 'Dance hnn?' Sephiroth burned with a strange type of annoyance. "Yeah, whatever," he growled, tossing the now crumbled piece of paper in the corner to lay forgotten.

..........................  
{1} (I hate the Aeris/Cloud pairing...XP)  
  
Ria-aeon-hunter: thanx very much! Cool pename.  
  
SuGar aNiMe FrEaK: wow. You must be my most enthusiastic reviewer! Oo Woo!  
  
DragonRose13: yay!! Glad to have yur support! And what do you mean 'jealous', I luv your ficcies. U.U I wish I could write like you.  
  
Riva van Dyk: domo arigato!  
  
AkaiUsagi: yes, I like to think that Sephiroth would like to play PS2. Why, don't ask. For me it makes a pleasant mental image!  
  
Stealth Wolf: oh, no! Don't go mute! 13/10? Wow. That defies math. YAY!!  
  
Riyoji Jeremishou: O- GO SEPHY!! Wow, I'm not the only one who is attracted to anyone with silver hair!!  
  
Allanby Biazury: thanks! Strangled cats sound quite funny!  
  
Merielle: I will, thanks.  
  
Wolfboy245: you have a lot of varying opinions about this fic. Lets see if I can respond to all of them. Thanx for thinking its funny. That matters to me! Squall is awesome. Say something degrading about Riku again, and I'll pop your arms off. Sora a sissy? Basically cause I see him as a little wimpish. Do you watch when you play KH? Sora has this thing where he _pouts_ whenever he feels insulted. Tell me that's not funny. The cold shower thing...well, I have to say, that comes from personal experience ; Dude, there is no such thing as too much Shounen Ai. THEY ARE GAY DAMMIT!!! Leave Tifa and Yuffie alone, their too cool to be harassed in the abyssal gutter that is your mind.  
  
AquaHawk-04: yeah, don't kill yourself there! Strange, I'm getting a lot of Sephiroth fangirls. We gotta stick together ya know? Here's that update!  
  
Silverstrifey819: thanx! And don't worry, Cloud and Sephiroth will have _a lot_ more lines.  
  
TwilightAmathyst: oh, I'm flattered. I guess you really need to read more KH fics then.  
  
Unknown mystery: O- well, its partially strait and partially yoai, depending on which couple you are talking about. But if for the most part, this is a Shounen Ai ficcy.


	7. Dancing with Disaster

Hi guys! Dude, I didn't realize how long it had been since I had updated. Long! Yes, I apologize for the delay. Thank you so so much for the reviews. 89 for six chapters is like… the academy awards for me. They make me happy:D

_I apologize before hand…this chapter **isn't** going to be **very funny**. I'm aiming for a more angry chapter. Rar…_

Before I begin, I'd like to start with a short and yet meaningful rant:

In one of my earlier chapters (I believe it was the last one) I made a comment about how I hate the clorith pairing. Okay, so I admit, _hate_ is a strong word. And I really can't say that I completely hate it, and since the time that I actually wrote that chapter, I have become more accustomed to the pairing. Its game cannon, and I really don't feel like fighting that. BUT-

I got a nasty review. Something along the lines of, 'you hate Aeris/Cloud, then I hate you!'. NOW LOOK YOU. I can see clearly that you like that pairing, and you are entitled to your opinion, as I am to mine. But I take insult (rightfully) to being hated for one of the _most retarded _reasons I have heard. I don't mind flames, so-and-so, but if you're going to throw me some "constructive criticism", have courage enough to _sign in_. HAVE A GOOD FREAKING DAY. :3

**Tetsuya Namora was walking down the street when all of a sudden he was shoved into a dark street corner. No one ever saw him again.**

Chapter 7 – Dancing with Disaster

(Apology for cheesy chapter title)

Several days had passed since Riku and Sora's first. Every day they were getting comfortable with the school, but like minigames in Zelda, the days were just a chain of events until the very last final boss. It had seemed that each passing morning, Sephiroth woke up with an attitude worst than the last and Cloud for one reason or another was getting even more anxious. This was kind of bizarre, because neither of them had done anything to upset each other since the shower incident. That morning in particular had been bad. As soon as Cloud's demon alarm clock went off, Sephiroth shot out of bed, about to pull his hair out as a sensitive nerve was struck. Grabbing the "goddamn abomination" (as Sephy liked to call it), he smashed it over his knee, which probably made more noise than the poor clock ever did.

Riku had awoken just in time to spot Sephiroth stalking out, slamming the door so hard it could have broken the windows. Ruffling his white hair sensitively, Riku yawned, finding that once he was awake, he could never fall asleep again. Finding nothing better to do than to get ready for class, he lazily climbed out of bed trying to shake that jelly-like feeling one gets first thing in the morning. Riku supposed the reason for Sephiroth's apparent unhappiness, started a few days earlier.

(Roll the flashback)

The phone had ringed in the middle of Mrs. Jenova's lecture. With a threatening glare, she silenced the entire class while she walked across the length of the class, making cloud clanks with her black heels. She picked the phone from the receiver, entwining the cord around her finger several times as she listened to the voice on the other end. After several mumbled sentences and an occasional raised eyebrow, she balanced the phone on one hand and beckoned one of her students. "Sephiroth, your…father, would like to speak with you…"

"My _father_, are you sure…?" Sephiroth asked incredulously. Jenova simply shrugged, and Sephiroth left his seat, rather slowly, to pick up the phone. "Hey, Hojo. What do you want?" The class was dead silent. Sephiroth's father was an important man in the world of science, not exactly the most loving person in the world, probably one of the most cruel and ruthless to clarify. The reason that he would call Sephiroth in the middle of the school-day was the question that plagued everyone's minds.

"Yes, I heard," Sephiroth said, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "Does it matter…?...why would I? Good for me, pfft, like you've ever given a flying flip what's good for me!" Sephiroth slammed the phone back into the receiver loudly, making several people flinch. Seething, Sephiroth plopped ungracefully back into his chair. Mrs. Jenova remained calm, and continued her lesson like nothing had ever happened.

_(fin) _

The day went smoothly, as smooth as it could anyway. Everyone was too anxious for the dance to begin. Cloud had a rude awakening, wondering fuzzily why his alarm clock lay in pieces in the floor. The day went pretty much on schedule. They headed off to sparing, where Sora won his first round against Tidus, who needed an icepack for his tender forehead. Riku practiced with Wakka, Barrett's star blitzer, seeing as they were approximately the same age and Wakka was always willing to throw his blitzball at something.

Cloud, being a SeED, was excused to for the day to help prepare for the dance. He had whined and moaned about it at first, then decided it was better than going to class. As for Sephiroth, he was having a good day judging from his apparent change in attitude from the early morning. He had been paired up with a punkish looking girl named Lulu. At first, he was reluctant to fight her at all, something about his 'manly pride' not letting him hit the fragile looking creature. That was until he was struck in the face with a Thundaga spell when her short fuse burned up. Then, of course, he had no regrets. "Don't look so shocked," she commented through blue-painted lips. Sora was quite surprised that later, Sephiroth was talking to her. He couldn't hear their conversation, and really had no idea what was going on. It went as follows:

Sephiroth scratched his head, looking up at the ceiling as he talked. It seemed like an awkward conversation. Lulu bunched her eyebrows together like she was confused. Sephiroth sighed, exaggerating his hand gestured like he was trying to explain something. He pointed in the direction that Riku and Wakka were sparring. Lulu glanced back there several times, smiling fondly a bit while Sephiroth kept on talking. After a moment of what looked like thinking on Lulu's part, she nodded her head curtly, shaking Sephiroth's hand. Sephiroth walked away smirking, with a look of accomplishment on his face that even Riku himself wouldn't have thought to question.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Jenova was an unrelenting teacher. Despite the groans of how it was the night of the dance, she refused to lighten the lesson plan. This left no time for spare conversations while Jenova watched her student squirm in their seats trying to solve rather difficult word problems. Perhaps this was the reason that suddenly after class, Sora was jerked back into the class room as the tidal wave of students crashed into the hall.

"Hey, Sora," Kairi asked. "Can I talk to you a minute?"

Riku who was a couple of rows down, was sliding the last of his binders into place, when he heard the two of them talking. The thought of the two conversing at all annoyed him enough, but he had a deep suspicion that this might be something worth listening in on. And of course, being the king of practical jokes, he was also the king of inconspicuous eavesdropping. Shady: yes. Was he ashamed? Hell no.

"Sure!" Sora said with that cheesy grin of his plastered on his face.

Riku smirked slightly, pulling his pencil box, filled conveniently with 45 different colored pencils out of his bag. He silently thanked his mother for the before-school shopping that she liked to do despite his protests. Then, checking to make sure neither Sora nor Kairi was looking, he opened the lid. The box dropped to the floor, creating a cloud slamming noise that echoed off the tile floor, with each and every one of those pencils making their own miniature effect as they spilled out. Kairi looked over, her eyes narrowed acidly. Riku shrugged innocently as if to say 'Clumsy me!'. He knelt to the floor, to pick up every individual pencil _very_ slowly.

"Anyway," Kairi recovered, then feigning shyness, asked, "I was wondering, well…maybe you'd like… to go to the dance with me…?"

Sora blinked (Riku growled), letting the information process in his mind. "Me? Sure!"

Kairi smiled brightly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "Good. I hoped you'd say yes".

"But…I would feel kind of bad, leaving Riku behind," Sora admitted guiltily, glancing back at his friend who was pretending not to be listening (but was growling like a leprechaun without his lucky charms). Kairi frowned a bit, feeling a bit agitated that being asked out didn't quite squelch the friendship issue out of the picture for at least a couple of hours. Riku smiled a little, sadly though. Sora, the git, still thought of him. And he was sure if he told him to, Sora would drop the date in an instant. But couldn't bring himself to do it. What kind of friend ever did that? He shook his head. He'd just have to admit to himself, Kairi took the first win. But he intended to win, next time.

"He'll be okay," Kairi said, the frown slowly dissipating back into a cheery grin. "So, I guess I'll see you tonight?"

Sora nodded. "I guess you will".

By this time, Riku had long since finished his eavesdropping, and was trying to contain the unpleasant feeling that had crawled up his throat from his stomach. He stood up, swinging the bag over his shoulder and headed for the door.

"Riku…?"

Turning around, Riku smiled weakly. "Heh, its okay. I wasn't planning on going anyway. I'll be spending my time elsewhere. Most likely hijacking Sephiroth's Playstation for the night, if you catch my drift".

" I really don't want to go if you're not Riku. Its like, blasphemy or something," Sora laughed nervously, watching Riku's fragile smile slowly crumble.

"No, you should go," Riku insisted. "It will be…fun".

Sora frowned, sensing a bit of a lie deeper within, but shook it away. "If you say so…".

"Oh yeah, it'll be fun," Cloud said, removing the boa constrictor the school chose to call a tie. Throwing it aside to the already cluttered half of the dormitory he proceeded to rummage through every article of clothing that he owned. "Besides, not going is like social suicide".

Riku glanced up from his magazine, clicking his tongue once, then flipped the page of a not-so-interesting article.

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Stop biting your tongue. Sora told me that you weren't going. Speaking of Sora, where is he?"

"Washing his hair," Riku replied half-heartedly, "so he can remove all the gel, than re-gel his hair when he is finished. It is an endless cycle if I do say so myself".

"Heh" Cloud flicked one of his own golden spikes that miraculously held itself without the use of hair products. "Go figure".

There came the noise of a door handle screeching open, and Sephiroth strode across the room with a smug look upon his face. Without even looking in their direction, he sat down in front of his trunk, pulling out random objects: various CDs, a couple of black T-shirts with names of rock bands splashed across them (not to mention a wristband type thing that featured a yellow bunny sticking a fork in an electrical socket). Satisfied, he found a black short sleeve dress shirt, quickly he stripped off his other shirt and replaced it. Cloud blinked, not sure that he'd ever seen Sephiroth that eager to change. He shrugged it off, occupying himself with his own clothing dilemma. By the Cloud had finished changing, Sephiroth had already taken himself hostage in the bathroom, doing God knows what. A couple of seconds later, there came a myriad of noises that erupted from within the tiny cubicle:

"_Sepiroth! _What the _hell_ – get out!"

"Sora! _Eeck._ Your shower has just been cut short, if this inconveniences you at all, I really don't care."

They heard several scraping noises and a yell of protest on Sora's behalf, then a rather loud thunking noise that a heavy object, such a human body, would make hitting the floor. The washroom door was pushed open very quickly, and Sora was dropped very unceremoniously on his very nude rear end, on the other side of it. Sora gaped in wide eyed astonishment. He looked back at the door, then at Cloud and Riku. Then it hit him. "H-hey, my clo-." The door opened for less than a nanosecond, allowing Sora's clothing to come tumbling out upon the cinnamon brown hair the was Sora's. He grumbled, removing his jacket from his head.

"Ever wonder what he does in there?" Sora asked, pulling on his cloths, feeling a bit uncomfortable with the water from his now flattened hair dripping down his back. Cloud nodded, staring at his reflection in the mirror, having trouble with one particular strand of hair that seemed to find a way to always fall right in front of his eyes.

"Every day of my life," he replied. Sighing, he gave up on his escapade to make his hair stay in one place. Turning around, he immediately had to stifle his laughter. "Just one question Sora: are you planning on wearing that to the dance?"

Sora pouted, looking down at his usual outfit with a shrug. "Why? Is there something wrong with it?"

"No, no," Cloud snorted. "Only I have never seen s guy your age wear a jumper, let along a bright red pair". He began to chuckle uncontrollably. "But I give you points for originality. Ronald McDonald would be so jealous."

Riku turned a burst of laughter into a coughing fit behind his magazine. It was true. He sometimes wished that Sora would grow out of his favorite outfit so that he could have an excuse to make him wear something a little more mature. But maybe Sora just wouldn't be Sora without a red jumper and yellow sneakers several sizes to big.

Sephiroth reemerged from within the bathroom, looking somewhat cleaner and fresher, his hair seeming a bit shiner (if possible) than before. There was a presence about him…that made them all feel as if they were about to be struck by lightening. Sora stared up at Sephiroth from his place on the floor, something making him seem even more dark and J-rocker-ish that usual. Sephiroh raised an eyebrow. "See something you like or are you just lost in your train of thought?"

"Are you…wearing eye-liner…?" Sora asked, rubbing the skin right below his eye as if it would clarify the question. Sephiroth smiled, glancing up sideways.

"I suppose that all depends on what your definition of wearing," he stated coolly. "For example, are you _wearing _a red jumper?"

Sora opened his mouth to reply, but then decided it was against his better judgment. It was like messing with a force that he had no understanding of. Sephiroth was quite unpredictable it seemed, he had already been thrown out of the shower, he couldn't possibly comprehend what might be next on his to-do list.

Sephiroth chuckled, almost goodheartedly, which made Sora shiver for the mere strangeness in it. "And yes, I _am _wearing eye-liner".

"Why-"

He rolled his eyes, like it were as obvious as day. "Because only real men can wear eye-liner, no frickin' duh," he snapped, grabbing his jacket.

"No," Sora tried to explain. "I mean, what's the need for?". Obviously he came to the reasoning that a person who was pretty much socially rejected wouldn't find the need to pretty themselves up. Sephiroth didn't so much as spare a glance in his direction as he answered.

"Well obviously, because I have a date, if you don't mind," he said, heading for the door. Cloud lurched forward, snorting.

"You?" Cloud asked incredulously. He gave a weak half-mouthed smile that kind of said in its own: _dude, this is a turning point in history. Remind me to take pictures and shake hands with your date. _

Turning around, Sephiroth smirked and strategically brushed a stray piece of hair away from his eyes. "Yes" he said nonchalantly. "Where you expecting something else?"

Cloud glared sourly through narrowed eyes. Sephiroth knew he didn't even have to glare back. The look on his face, sly smirk and all was a magnificent replacement for the normal "Ha! Who wins now bi-otch!"

Sinking into a shallow defeat raised his nose into the air and replied. "Good for you…".

"Yeah," Sephiroth said, a little concerned that his natural ability to make his rival fall into a bottomless pit of rage and sorrow might be slipping. Cloud's reaction was less than satisfactory in his eyes. I mean, the least thing he could do was hurt himself in a fruitless attempt to look tough. But _good for you _? That's one he'd never heard before. He glanced in Cloud's direction, pursing his lips sourly, then cocking his head to one side. "Whatever…" He turned around and opened the door. Once he had stepped about one halfway out the doorway, he turned back around to face them. "And by the way, Strife, that shirt is the ugliest thing I have ever seen in my life. It looks like a rainbow got sick and blew chucks on it" Then he finished his fateful journey through the doorway, shutting it behind him.

"Eeck," Cloud murmured, glaring at his own reflection.

"What is it?" Sora asked, hardly amused at all since he was still very kicked out of his shower. But he had to admit, the rainbow barf comment was really a stroke of creative brilliance on Sephiroth's part.

Cloud chuckled, pulling off the shirt. "Heh, he was right". He really hadn't even liked the thing in the first place. It was just something the Aerith squealed at and claimed would look totally hot at him and had quickly purged it from the store with the work of her magical credit card. But really, he hardly thought that even stoned hippies would have accepted him with thing this kind of apparel. Before Sephiroth had mentioned it he was about to submit to Aerith's will and wear the hideous shirt to the dance. But he got his senses smacked into him.

Sora pouted his infamous pout, and got up off the floor, rummaging in his drawers. "You know what? I'm going to…change into some normal pants…"

Sora looked about the room, surprised that in just a few hours, the main hallway could be transformed into a place that was not for learning, but simple for the love of doing something else with their lives. With a little lighting and some brightly colored streamers hanging off the water-spewing gargoyle, it was a bit of an improvement in his opinion.

He had discovered once he had changed into somewhat normal pants, since they were still some weird sort of parachute pants, that he looked almost older and taller. This was good, he figured, because he hardly looked like a thirteen year old, let alone a fourteen year old. Kairi was there as well, wearing this white and violet tank top type thing and a whitish skirt with pink frills. Although it looked casual enough, it was her secret that she had spent several hours trying to get that look down to an art. But hey, she would think. Perfection didn't come without sacrifice. And of course, it was in her opinion that while no one was perfect, she was as close as it got. And of course her posse seemed to think along those lines as well.

If there never was a judgment day when you died, you would certainly come pretty close by stepping into that room. It was like a cat-walk. All eyes were on you. If something went wrong, it would go around the school and within the hour, people who didn't even know who you were would be talking about it. But the entire school knew that Kairi was not the kind to screw this up. It was always her and the rest of her clique that always received the best compliments even by people who stood insignificant against her spotlight, even people who thought she was a snob. They topped the hierarchy of the school, and although there were battles, bloody name-calling and hair-pulling battles, they could never be stripped of their powers. At least not net yet.

Sora had found himself rushed into a crowd of people. After all, he did enter the room with Kairi, self proclaimed princess of Saint Barrett's. No matter how many years that would pass, he would still be considered one of them, because of that one moment in time. Sora had smiled at their comments, nodded on occasion and gave out his opinion like it apparently mattered to them now. While he was glad he was accepted, something else bothered him. It felt kind of strange hanging out with the type of people that might have once snickered at him every time he and Riku would TP the Multipurpose room, or dung-bombed the chem. Lab. Back then he wouldn't have minded being them, sometimes he thought that if Riku had given up his life as the world's greatest trouble maker, they might gain some respect. But somehow…Sora tried to get rid of that feeling in his stomach that he made a horrible mistake…he didn't know how, but somehow…he did. As he laughed with them, it felt like he really wasn't laughing.

As he heard the cloud ruckus dull a little, Sora turned around to see that Cloud and Aerith had made their arrival. Cloud had that whole 'I'm too cool for this, but I am gracing you with my presence' look down, but there still seemed to be what might have been a trace of embarrassment. Aerith giggled a little, adjusting her pink dress and clinging to Cloud's arm like a small child might hold their favorite new teddy bear. Sora had had snorted into a cup of punch (receiving quite a lot of strange looks), genuinely tickled by the fact that Cloud's devil shirt had been resurrected. It seemed that Aerith has unearthed it, and Cloud was struggling inwardly on whether or not he should have refused. But Sora figured since it was Cloud wearing it, in the next few weeks there would be a dozen or so more rainbow-puke colored shirts present throughout the school. Simply because Cloud was a great guy, and Aerith Gainsborough thought it hot.

Cloud noticed Sora's gaze, and his eyes got big and he jerked his head in Aerith's direction several times as if to explain. Sora only snickered, then covered his mouth to stifle his laughter.

"Hi Kairi, Sora," Aerith greeted them warmly. "Look who I managed to drag up…?" The rest of them laughed politely, even Sora, thought he thought it was a line that his own mother might have used in her day. Even Cloud rolled his eyes, not to be funny, but because simply it wasn't the best line they'd heard. "You're looking nice."

"Thanks, you too?" Sora replied, wondering if his choice of words was adequate.

Aerith giggled into Cloud's sleeve. "You think so…? Is that right Cloudy-kun?"

"Huh…right…," Cloud replied, breaking out of a different trail of thoughts that had nothing to do with how good his girlfriend looked. His mind had been wandering on to other subjects.

"A little distracted?" Tidus asked, his own arm dominated by the yellow clad Selphie thing, or so Sora liked to call it.

Cloud blinked, grinning and snapping his fingers. "Yeah," he said. "I'm a bit puzzled, and it's bugging the hell out of me that I can't find the answer anywhere".

"Let me guess. You are still trying to figure out who Sephiroth got to go with?" Sora asked, as his guess was as good as anyone else's.

"YES!" Cloud said exasperatedly, flailing his arms about. 'Exactly!"

Kairi chewed her lip, and tapped her chin with her index finger repetitively. She seemed stumped and her inside connections seemed to be getting her nowhere. If a computer had a face when it couldn't process information properly, it might have resembled her expression. "Well, gosh, I don't know. I haven't heard of anyone who liked him in particular. I mean, I don't blame them, cause he's one mean little goblin who doesn't like billygoats crossing over his bridge."

Sora raised an eyebrow at Kairi's choice of expressions. It was random, but it did make sense. Sephiroth was protecting something he never wanted anyone to see, and thus became the monster that no one wanted to hang around with. Then no one would be able to get close enough to see what there was to see.

"I've met Sephiroth…," Aerith said quietly. "he doesn't seem that b."

"He's that bad," Kairi cut her off.

Someone tapped Sora on the shoulder, and found himself staring into the face of a girl with one blue eye and one green eye with brown hair that was cropped short. She smiled. "Hey, Sora?"

"Yes?...Yuna, right?" Sora asked, a bit confused as to what she wanted with him.

"Right," she replied, smiling. "I was wondering…Sephiroth is your roommate right?"

Sora nodded.

"That's what I thought," Yuna said. "My friend, is looking for him actually, and I haven't seen her for a while. Do you know where Sephiroth is by any chance?"

"No, I'm sorry, I haven't seen him for a couple of hours," Sora said rubbing the back of his head. "Who's looking for him?" he asked.

Yuna looked a bit crestfallen and murmured, "Oh. Well, my friend Lulu was the one who wanted to know where he was. It was kind of strange…Lulu actually kind of looked happy. And I know for a fact that she _really _likes this other guy and since other men kind of repulse her," she giggled warmheartedly, "Well, I was just wondering what made her change her mind".

"Oh, that makes total sense!" Kairi exclaimed, clapping her hands together joyously. "You know since their both so-.".

"So what," Cloud said, unusually serious. Kairi glanced over at cloud and raised an eyebrow. Crinkling her nose, she shrugged it off and looked in the other direction. Yuna too, had a curiously displeased look. Obviously she was waiting to hear whatever Kairi had to say about her friend.

Kairi diverted her eyes in a different direction. "Never mind…" Kairi murmured, cocking her head to the side.

"No, actually I wanted to hear what you were trying to say about me," came a mocking voice from behind her. It sounded friendly at first, but the more clever of the group could sense the dark undertone in it. Kairi didn't even have to turn around to know who it was. "No, really I do," Sephiroth said a little more seriously. "And I'm sure she would love you know too," he said, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder. Lulu crossed her arms over her black dress, smiling irritably and shifting what side her head laid. Such a combination was famous for the saying '_People like you make me **sick**'._

Sora was a bit relieved actually. That someone had put a stop to it. Kairi looked like she could have exploded, the way the tables had turned so fast. She huffed, turning the color of black cherry ice-cream right under her eyes, grabbing Sora by the sleeve of his shirt and spinning around. "We're going to go get some punch!" she exclaimed, not even trying to hide how angry she was. Sora stumbled after her.

"Great job," Cloud said, nodding. "She's going to hate you forever now. She won't forget". Sephiroth shrugged, looking unconcerned.

"Wonderful, now I have an excuse," Lulu commented acidly. She seemed a bit uninterested in the conversation as a whole, as perhaps her attention was elsewhere. Yuna approached her, and they began talking rapidly in hushed voices.

"_Really?" _Yuna said rather loudly. Her gaze flickered over to Cloud suspiciously, then at Sephiroth, and then to Cloud again. She turned her eyes back toward her friend and clasped her hand over her mouth to stifle an onset of high-pitched giggles. Cloud raised an eyebrow, _somehow_ getting the unsettling feeling that he was being whispered about.

Yuna left the group, but not before smacking Sephiroth on the arm playfully (which was strange because most people would be afraid to smack Sephiroth in any kind of way) giving him a well humored "Good Luck". Sephiroth felt like smacking himself in the forehead, shaking his head

Cloud frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. His mood had dropped dismally since earlier in the evening for no apparent reason. "So…," he sighed. "You did get a date after all. Good for you".

'Leviathan, what is with the hell is up with the _good for you _again?' Sephiroth thought. "Yes. I believe I told you that before, maybe you weren't listening," he responded crossly.

Cloud nodded, shifting uncomfortably. There was a rather awkward silence that followed. Aerith blinked slowly, adjusting her grip on her boyfriend's arm, which seemed to spring Cloud into saying something.

"So…you like Lulu?" Cloud asked. He really didn't consider that a possibility before. He's never really noticed anything…special going on between them. It barely seemed that Sephiroth conversed with her at all before today.

Sephiroth shrugged, closing his eyes indifferently. "She's cool…" he smiled thinly almost creating a pensive expression. "I suppose she knows…how I feel".

Cloud shifted uncomfortably once again. Aerith blinked. The conversation seemed to be buzzing with nervous energy, she noticed. There must have been something that she wasn't aware of. Whatever it was, it was pissing the living hell out of Cloud. He really wanted to say something, but he refrained. Like a living stick of dynamite, he was bound to explode at any given moment. One thing was for sure, Sephiroth was the reason, and the fact that he had found someone he really liked.

Like an anvil falling from the sky, it hit her. 'Okay…interesting,' Aerith mused. Smiling, she unhooked her arm from Cloud's. "Sephiroth, may I speak with you privately for a moment?"

He paused, considering any possible negative effects this might cause. Although he really couldn't think of any, one never really could tell with these sweet quiet types. It reminded him creepily of his step-mom. His real mother was a crazy bitch with an unnerving fetish for puppets…But whatever it was, the inserted '_privately' _part of the question, here meant "There is unpleasantness in your near future. Possibly within the next few seconds".

"Now?" Aerith added quickly.

"Alright…" Sephiroth said hesitantly, following behind the pink-clad one. They passed Sora, who was busy filling Kairi's fifth glass of punch. From the looks of things, Kairi's facial color had returned to almost normal, and she would be able to enjoy the dance again. Sephiroth chuckled when she shot him a most intense death glare.

"Sit," Aerith commanded, not bothering to sugarcoat it.

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, then did as instructed. Who did this woman think she was dealing with? He snorted. "Yes Ma'am."

She took the seat next to him and began with a dazzling smile. "Well…"

"Miss Gainsborough, you really creep me out".

Aerith took a breath, her grin dimming a tiny bit. "Now, why is that?"

"No reason, besides how you're constantly smiling about something," Sephiroth answered, leaning back in his chair. "You're not always happy, that's for sure. I don't see why you bother wasting your time."

Pressing her eyebrows together, Aerith waited for him to speak again.

"For example," he continued, noticing her silence. "Right now, you aren't exactly pleased with me, for whatever reason. No excuses, because I can already tell," he commented, as Aerith opened her mouth to protest. "So, I'd prefer if you didn't beat around the bush as you tell me the exact reason why."

"Why…that's very perceptive of you," Aerith stuttered, a tiny bit surprised. "Well, Sephiroth…" she started, twisting the material of her dress out of unconscious habit. She seemed to be loosing the boldness that she was graced with a few moments before. "I-I know what you're trying to do…"

Raising an eyebrow, his lips formed a slim, almost smirk-like smile. "You do, do you?" Sephiroth's eyes darkened. "So, what do you care of it?"

"It won't work…it won't work!" she repeated raising her voice. "By some slim chance, you thought that things would suddenly go back to the way they were, you're wrong."

The smile immediately faded from Sephiroth's face. What replaced it was a complete grimness, one that suited his character so well that Aerith Gainsborough paused her incessant ranting. "Don't pretend…like you know everything. You know _nothing_," he hissed venomously.

"So wrong!" she repeated.

He was about to loose his patience.

Shaking like a small mouse eyed by a hawk, Aerith stated, "Y-you cannot have him. He won't forgive you…You can't have him! I won't let you!"

"This conversation, is over," spat Sephiroth, standing up. Pure waves of vehement must have been rolling off of him, because everyone magically knew to avoid him. The feeling that his insides were turning to ash was enough to drive him crazy. Why was it that everyone made it their business to irritate him? Even that meek, friendly girl was a stupid jealous cow on the inside. She was going to have to watch out if she didn't want to wake up one day with a sword stuck in her back. The pleasant thought would have made him smile if he weren't so pissed off.

As he was passing the refreshment table in his volcanic rendition of manic depression, he paused taking a cup of something-o-other, and downed half of it. Though it was fruit punch, he noticed that there was something wrong with it. It burned his nose and tasted something akin to hairspray. _'Ugh," _he thought. Someone had spiked it with cheap corner store alcohol. That would be so great if he weren't underage.

He drained the remaining contents of his paper cup, then crushing it easily in his hands, tossed it behind his head. A small portion of his anger had just melted away. Maybe it wasn't worth it. All his efforts seemed to be creating more problems for himself. He exited the main hall, and sat on one of the benches that all the wallflowers chose. Unfortunately, he failed to recognize that the bench was already occupied.

Sora looked up from his conversation. Kairi was leaning on his shoulder. She wrinkled her nose in Sephiroth's direction, but he noticed that her glare was lacking. "You should take her to her room," Sephiroth told Sora, without any emotion really.

"Go to hell," she mumbled, making a pathetic attempt to look badass.

He rolled his eyes. She definitely wasn't any more pleasant while drunk. There were a thousand intelligent comebacks to that one, none of which he cared to voice. It was pick on Sephiroth day for everyone.

"What the hell did you say to her!"

Sephiroth glanced up, noticing for the first time that Cloud Strife and what would be the rest of the posse had entered to the room. This wasn't a good sign.

"I'm talking to you!" Cloud growled. "What did you say to Aerith?"

"I didn't say anything to her," Sephiroth replied, sitting up.

"That's bullshit, and you know it!" the blonde said, looking angry and strangely disappointed. "You said something to upset her!"

Sephiroth scoffed, his eyes darkening. "I don't pick on little girls, Strife. She did all the talking". Grabbing his arm, Cloud forced Sephiroth to his feet. For once, the silver-haired one didn't smirk, or even display his amusement.

"Go ahead…hit me," he said, barely even blinking. Cloud let go, his eyebrows drawn together.

"What?"

"Hit me. I'm sure it would make your girlfriend feel a great deal better". He sighed, not wasting a look of contempt for the pink-clad girl who had attached herself to Cloud's arm once again. "But…would it make _you_ feel any better?"

For a moment all remained silent. Cloud looked uncomfortable, his expression almost pensive as he opened his mouth, then closed it again and his gaze drifted to different places in the hall, but mostly the floor.

Aerith chewed her lip, becoming uneasy. "Cloud…common. Let's dance…". She dragged him by his forearm, out into the main room. The rest of the posse followed after grumbling, annoyed that there hadn't been a fight. Lulu remained behind as an exception.

"So…I guess things didn't go as you planned them…did they?" her voice wasn't dripping with sarcasm this time. She seemed sympathetic. "It's a shame…that neither of us can get what we desire…but that doesn't mean we have to surrender". She smiled sadly. "There's still some time left. Do you want to dance or something?".

Sephiroth shook his head. "I think I'll just sit down. You should ask Wakka to dance with you," he said as they walked out into the main hall as well. He too smiled just a tiny bit. "I can guarantee he'll say yes. You should just tell him."

"Alright," she answered, leaving him to sit in a cheap plastic chair. "But I'm only going to say this once so, listen up. I think, you're a good person beneath all the grunge. So, do me a favor and practice what you preach. No one would suspect how timid you are," she laughed, a rare sight for anyone. She spotted Wakka, and like an eagle, descended upon him. But not before "accidentally" shoving her way roughly between Cloud and Aerith. He laughed despite himself, watching the punk-rocker approach him, turning only slightly pink, before mumbling something, which in turn turned the Hawaiian an unnatural cherry color. It was almost encouraging. Almost.

"How sentimental…" said a deep voice of a person who could have been a used care salesman. Sephiroth shuddered visibly. It was no use pretending like he didn't hear it. "Doesn't it just give you the warm-fuzzies?"

Sephiroth closed his eyes, aware of the presence that had not been right next to him a few moments before. "What are you doing here Hades? Don't you have lives to destroy or something?"

The blue humanoid grinned, showing of a row of pointed teeth. "Naw, kiddo. Had a sit-down with that headmaster of yours, and I came down especially to see you. Don't that make you feel ever so special?" The god of the underworld snorted, waving a pointed hand as he spoke.

"I'm really not in the mood for this," Sephiroth growled, turning his head the other way.

"Hey hey!" Hades said quickly, reappearing in front of the silver-haired boy as not to lose the conversation. "What's got your goat, eh? Everyone's having a ball, except _you_. Still angsting over that spike-head?" Sephiroth sunk lower into his chair, rolling his eyes. Hades raised a non-existent eyebrow, chuckling loudly. Out of all the things he could be doing, nothing seemed more appealing at the time then causing a depressive fit for Hojo's finest specimen. It was a hobby. He glanced about the dance, unnoticed by the other teens. "Hey look, if it isn't Strife and the flower girl now."

Reluctantly, Sephiroth looked up from his lowly place. They were dancing slowly and Aerith was smiling brightly at him. She leaned forward, placing a kiss on Cloud's lips before resting her head on his shoulder.

There was a loud clattering sound and a chair was completely tipped over. Aerith's head snapped up, barely missing Cloud's jaw. Lulu turned her head from her conversation with Wakka, watching as Sephiroth left the room briskly. "Oh Yevon…" she murmured. "Excuse me one moment…" she said to Wakka. He nodded.

At speeds unexpected from a girl in such a constrictive dress, she walked at Cloud. She had half a mind to slap him across the face, but she held back. "You…!" she weezed, prodding him in the forehead with her index finger. "I thought Sephiroth was an idiot, but you…you just take the cake! Do you have any idea what you have been doing? Do you have any idea why he does those things?"

"What are you talking about?" Cloud asked (quite fearfully).

Lulu glared at him, wanting very much to cause him the most extreme pain. "Despite how you taunt him, treat him like dirt…I can't believe you! How is it that you two were _best friends _and you _still_ can't understand. Why do you THINK, you dumb blonde, that he might possibly be upset with you? One of these days, he'll just get fed up playing. If you still don't know what I'm talking about, go ask him yourself!"

Cloud swallowed, his gaze turning towards the ground. For a moment he remained that way, trying to understand. Lifting his face from the floor, he ran for the exit.

Still in his little corner of the room, Hades chuckled to himself. "Thought so".

* * *

And thank you very much to all of my reviewers!

**AkaiUsagi **( really tho. Im not found of Aeris pairings. Aeris/Zax maybe, mostly because it says so in the game, Thanx for your input) **addmoose2004 **(Thank you. Your penname is teh sex! XD) **SuGaR aNiMe FrEaK **(woot. You're still my most enthusiastic reviewer! Someone's had a little to much ramune. Thank you for your super review. Those always mean so much to me! ) **DragonRose13 **(hehehe) **Unknown Mystery **(um…okay OO that's nice. Good for you…) **Wolfboy245 **(sorry. I just don't think that Yuffie/Tifa is that great of a yuri pairing…Yuffie's kinda…not like that? Try Rikku/Paine. Actually, that's really the only one that I really like.) **vash-lover323 **(lol. Better sharpen that masamune eh?) **greyspark **(thank you!) **ChaosSora99 **(hmm. Well, it will seem like it. Thanks for your imput, that's really interesting) **Kikay671 **(ha. Actually, I've seen that doujinshi. I luv that. hehe) **Somethingorother **(stop advertising in my reviews, mari-chan ; no one really reads them besides myself) **silentchill **(domo arigato) **Riley Cat **(flaming marshmallows…catches one and eats it yuuuum) **evilriku-54321 **(im not even going to attempt to respond to all of your reviews. Yes…there is "gayness" in this fic. Thanks for your uber reviewiness!) **BagginAlong **(whee, thank you for your review! That means a lot!) **RikkuYuffielover88 **(blink no. but Im trying to add a little something special for the guys who read my fic) **DisturbedDucky **(kudos! Thank you) **Annabella the Lost **(no problem! I don't review unless I like the story! ) **dimonyo-anghel **(hehe. Good job with the pairings. You hit the nail right on the head) **TrisDa bluegayle **() **kodoku no ookami **(ha, the irony) **camigril4k3 **(whee. Long review. Dude, you're like…an ecchi like me. Whooo. Its the yaoi rapeishness. Yeah, I have kh:com. But my gameboy got smashed. Damn fate and its evil twists. Yeah, well, welcome to my world, where most everything I right it yaoi. Some het, not so much. Whee for jealous gay peeps. Woot!) **Squirrelgurl **(thanku) **TotalREfan **(ahh, thanks for the DS piccu. Very creative. Yeah. Oh, the SeED thing? I ripped it off from the Coliseum, which is like…you know Seed 10 – Hercules…blah blah blah. If I remember, which I often don't its also in FF8, or something. I dunno. I could be way off. I just used it for the hall monitor thing. Bwt, AU stands for "Alternate Universe", meaning the setting is different from the original game) **demon of strife **(look up hun, that beginning rant was made specially for you :3)


	8. Never Simple or Clean

OMG. It's a UPDATE D: Guys, I'm sorry. It was about a week ago that I bothered to look at my stats. I haven't updated this piece of crap in over a YEAR. And for that... XP I should be punished. This chapter has been lying unedited on my computer for most of that time, and I'm just to lazy to do anything productive. I was also kind of hoping to spruce up the older chapters a bit before moving on, four chapters of which I managed to do before I gave up. x3 There's another day for that project.

Also, I'd really like to thank all my reviewers and those who urged my to continue this story. It really does mean a lot to me. Last year, when I broke 100 reviews I almost died. Of happiness of course. Also, I'd like to thank my friend Marissa for helping write this chappy. I ended up deleting a lot of it, so I hope she's not mad. It was just too long. -sniff-

WARNING: Here, I am extending a warning to those who have followed along with my story up until now and didn't bother to read the text in my summery and at the beginning of the first chapter. This story has SHOUNEN AI. That means that there are boys who are interested in boys. Why do I write it? Simple.

Because I like it.

So, if you don't appreciate these kind of pairings: 1) feel free to leave 2) read for the sake of reading it and 3) don't bother flaming me cause I don't care and it does nothing but make you look like a fool.

Bitchy of me? Perhaps.. But this chapter HAS IT. XD haha. Finally!

;D Well…on with the show.

Tetsuya Nomura was pulling his brand new apple red Mitsubishi out of the Square Enix studios parking lot, when he was suddenly attacked by hooded Organization members and dragged off into the shadows of the urban skyscrapers.

ILLUSTRATIONZ:

(you need totype this in manually cause doesn't allow html codes)

deviantart -dot- com -slash- deviation -slash- 24080927(this one's of seph I did a WHILE back. He's scrawny but he's like... "Who do you think your talking to you dumb whore."

deviantart -dot- come -slash- deviation -slash- 16624336 (Ah! OMG. I got frickin FANART. -hyperventilates- this was submitted by an 'anonymous' reader by the name of drkagl790.)

deviantart -dot- com -slash- deviation -slash- 15808534(this is an even OLDER one...that spurred that fanart one above. It was a concept sketch and I sorta mentioned that anyone could submit their ideas for a uniform or character redesign for this story. People can still do it if they want too. )

I've gotten better since drawing these...I'm planning on doing more illustrations and I'll try to remember to post them.

**Chapter 2: Never Simple or Clean**

His perfect blue eyes were clouded over with worry as he paced up and down the hallway. Each and every time he came close to the door, he stopped and considered leaving it be and returning to the party. But there was a guilt monster gnawing upon him like he was a juicy steak and that is why the random passerby could watch Cloud Strife walk to one of the hall, stop abruptly, then turn around and walk in the opposite direction. This action was repeated several times, until the one-who-had-been-interrupted-from-his-reading-far-too-many-times-to-be-tolerated shoved the door open.

Riku slammed his head against the doorframe. "Would you please stop your incessant pacing and get your ass in here?" Surprised, Cloud stopped in his tracks.

"Is he in there?" Cloud asked, internally slapping himself for being caught in a mental breakdown. Riku wasn't the ideal person to be caught by either. Sure he was nice enough, but he reminded him a bit of Sephiroth, if that wasn't eerie enough. He often tried to ignore that fact.

Riku shrugged, stepping outside and closing the door behind him. He talked softer than usual as he said, "If you mean Sephiroth, yeah, he's in there. But he doesn't really seem in a talking mood." He stared up at Cloud, as if he was trying to see right through him. Cloud flinched as his face became grimmer, and he seemed almost speculative. "Don't tell me, you guys got in another fight?" Bingo. Except he wasn't quite sure if it counted as a fight if they hardly said two words to each other and Sephiroth lost his temper for no apparent reason.

Scratching the back of his head, Cloud sighed. "I don't know. Whatever it is, apparently its my fault." Riku nodded sagely, something about him daring to suggest that he knew something he didn't. Of course Cloud wasn't going to ask. Manly pride didn't allow. "Riku...could you do me a favor and..."

"Say no more," Riku said, stepping away and patting Cloud on the back (as if they had suddenly become the best of friends) as he walked away. "If you need me, I'll be at Vincent's. And good luck. I have a feeling you'll need it..." Cloud blinked, hoping those were words of encouragement, rather than words of "Seph's gonna stab your ass, and laugh as he does it".

He pushed open the door and was hit with huge shock. Huge, here meaning, 'out of the ordinary'. It was perfectly silent, except for the soft rustle of paper. He shut the door behind him quietly, as not to disturb anything. He felts as if the smallest tremor could send the other completely insane. That is apposed the 94 percentbasket case that the silver-haired teen already was. Peering across the room, he noticed the body-shaped lump lying on a bed, and assumed it was Sephiroth, as the chances where slim to it being anyone else. His back was turned to Cloud, and he seemed to be flipping absent mindedly through the pages of some book.

Cloud sucked in a breath. He…was a man! He could do this. No one scared Cloud Strife, not even Sephiroth! Well, maybe just a little. Or a whole lot. But he was going to tackle this fear, and gut it, so he could hang it over his mantle. Well... maybe not...cause that would be rather barbaric. Either way, Cloud had to mentally jazz himself up, cause although he looked tough, he could quite have been the biggest scaredy-cat at the moment.

Hesitantly, he detached himself from the doorpost, taking steps toward Sephiroth. The other didn't seem to notice his presence, giving him a boost of confidence. He had just approached the foot of his bed before Sephiroth let out a long winded sigh, almost making the blond jump out of his skin and run. He breathed again, still grateful that he went unnoticed. Shakily, he reached forward.

Eyes wide, Sephiroth's head shot up as Cloud's hand barely grazed his shoulder. The book in his hands slammed shut in less than a second and the headphones that had hindered his ability to hear the blonde coming only moments before where ripped out of his ears.

"_What_ do you _want_?" the silver-haired one snapped in what would have usually been his discourteous and testy manner. However, this time it didn't have the same effect that it normally did. It was lacking a considerable amount of anger. He noticed how Cloud's expression was kind of confused, rather than stoic or uncaring. Cloud stared, his eyebrows knitted together.

It took Sephiroth all but two seconds to realize what he was staring at. Quickly he turned his face away from the other. "Just GO away, can't a person get some peace…?"

Cloud for a moment, had lost all ability to speak. Unless his eyes had deceived him, he had witnessed something that inspired several sarcastic remarks, but all of them seemed too cruel. "What's…wrong?" he asked, remembering the reason that he came in the first place.

"Just go back. To your girlfriend and your posse. There is nothing wrong with me." _Aside from the usual, _he thought bitterly.

"Oh, then why are you crying?"

Sephiroth froze. "I'm not," he muttered bitterly. "I don't cry."

Cloud rolled his eyes, shock wearing away. "You're eyeliner seems to disagree with you." The silver-haired one muttered an obscenity under his breath and sighed.

"Do you want something from me, or have you come up with yet a better way to make me miserable?" he muttered, folding his arms over his chest.

Cloud was getting frustrated all over again. He came down to have a level headed conversation (more or less) and Sephiroth was being pissy, like every other day. Except today it bothered him, cause he didn't go and intentionally cause it. "Look," Cloud hissed. "Under normal circumstances I wouldn't be here. Do you think I enjoy listening to you bitch about this and that? According to someone, you are upset about something, and its my fault. Whatever it is, I'm sorry, okay? Does that ring any bells for you?"

Turning around once again to show the inky lines hastily whipped away from his pale skin, Sephiroth sneered "I don't need your apology Strife, nor do I want it."

"Don't give me that, why?" Cloud snappishly asked.

Sephiroth laughed. It was weak and hallow but effective nonetheless. He got up off his bed, pacing about the small room. Lips pulled into a grim smile, he almost seemed amused. But there was no twinkle in his eyes, nothing to show that he found this situation funny in any way. He succeeded most in looking angry and impatient. "Because, you _dolt_, you don't even know what you're apologizing for." Cloud chose not to interrupt him while he was talking, because he was feeling generous, but mostly because he was within masumune range.

"When a person says I'm sorry, they are saying I regret it, I wont do it again, it would cause me more regret, I shouldn't have done it. You don't even know _what_ you regret. You don't know what you did, you can't fix it if it happens again. So, to you it is meaningless. For me, even more so."

Cloud bit his lip, adverting his eyes. "Well…I'm _sorry_."

"Do you think I care?" Sephiroth spat vehemently.

"Yes!...Maybe…" Cloud sputtered.

Remaining silent, Sephiroth stopped his pacing. He gritted his teeth, holding back a more brutal set of words that sizzled and boiled within him. He sat on Sora's bed, for once not complaining that it was merely a pile of filth disguised as something one should sleep on. Leaning his elbows on his knees, he barely spoke. "Just go…before I say something none of us wants to hear."

"Sephiroth…" Cloud said once again. "What. Is. Wrong."

"I said, GO!"

"Tell me!"

Teeth clenched. "I'm warning you..."

"Fuck your warning-."

Cloud grunted as he was shoved roughly into the wall, unable to move. "Do you really want to know what's wrong with me!" Sephiroth snarled, unable to contain his anger any longer. Cloud winced, Sephiroth's hands pushing his shoulders harder into the wall behind him. "I'm sure you've heard about half of it, but there's no way you can understand. He's crazy, my dad, if you can even call him that.He'sa crazy fucking inept scientist, who wouldn't lift a finger if I was dying other than to record what was happening. You've met his girlfriend, Lucrecia. Nicest lady in the world. Adores him, he couldn't live without her. But he beats her! He doesn't give a shit for anyone,not unlinkemy real mother who is a fucking MATH teacher! Somehow since I share half her genes that makes us thick as thieves, or so she likes to pretend. She's crazier that Hojo is! Oh, and guess what! You know her too." Sephiroth didn't stop there.

"And then there's your girlfriend, Miss Gainsborough. It seems that she can see exactly what's wrong with me. Because she does enjoy rubbing salt in the wound if I do say so myself. And kudos for her. She has won the prize for being the first person to achieving making me utterly hate them in less than a week. And the worse thing! The worse…thing…" he choked, bowing his head. His hands no longer held the strength to pin Cloud.

As his shoulders shook to a point where he was unable to tell if he was laughing and crying anymore, Cloud's eyes widened and he reached out. "Sephiroth, don't…"

"No!" Sephiroth shook, covering his face in shame. "The worst thing, the worst thing! I can't have the _only_ thing I want. Everything else would seem so small. I've tried to forget, I've tried to get _over_ it. I'd give anything just to be able to never think about it ever again. It's not fair! You don't know how many times I've begged whoever's listening, that I could change this one thing. I know what it is. I know what I'm sorry for…! All I want…the only thing…i-is…"

Cloud breathed, unable to pick up much from this all. It was coming to much to fast. "I'm sorry…I…don't understand it all…especially how I have anything to do with-"

"you…"

"What…?" Cloud asked.

Sephiroth took a shuddery breath, slowly composing himself enough to stare at Cloud in the face. "…All I want…is you."

Like a quick flash, all the nerve that may have been left in the silver-haired one evaporated; he was searching blindly for something to hide behind.

Cloud wasn't very flattered- he had no idea he was supposed to be. He still hadn't the slightest clue at what the silver head had meant. His eyes trailed around the room- his brows still rather attached at the tip. "Sephiroth...you have me more than you realize- I'm here aren't I?" He swallowed rather deeply and tried to think of anything to add, " I mean...I sorta share a dorm room with you..." The smile crept onto his features was quickly wiped clean as Sephiroth countered.

"You just don't get it do you!" his eyes showed far more pain than he was willing to let on- and yet...

His head shook for a few moments before he dropped his gaze and closed his eyes tightly. "Cloud- you just don't get it, you never got it back then...I don't think you ever will...so..just go.." he muttered, the words sour tasting in his mouth.

Cloud on the other hand had nothing to say- well he did in a sense..but he was a afraid he was scared of hurting him more. "Sephiroth...let me understand- I want to understand..." He brushed a few stray strands of blonde from his face.

But he wasn't prepared for the tug at the collar of his shirt, by the hands that could easily destroy him and yet didn't. It was only a moment and yet it didn't matter. An eternity wouldn't be long enough for Cloud's fuzzy mind to process what was happening; those were Sephiroths lips, Sephiroth's tears. That was his warmth.

The other released his grip, and as quickly as it had come the warmth had suddenly disappeared. "I'm sorry." This was muttered so quickly and quietly that it was barely audible. Sephiroth slowly rose to his feet, his breathing almost non-existent. His face struggled and flickered between an attempt at an emotionless mask and the human who couldn't handle the defeat anymore. Walking slowly across the room, he took the doorknob in his hand and opened it easily. It was then that Cloud remembered to breathe. He was just going to leave?

"After a while... a person starts to learn that not all prizes are won through battles. And... after trying for long enough, that some... are completely unattainable." For a moment Cloud was sure he saw the light in the other's feline green eyes waver. Offering Cloud a last feeble smile, he pushed the door open.

"Making myself realize this...didn't make it easier for me. But, I did hope, that by doing so, I could somehow make it easier for you."

* * *

"Common! Man, seriously, this is boring," a tall, thin seventeen year old boy whined. "Shit..." he swore as the branch of a fur tree overhead ripped a couple strands of red hair from their roots. He sniffed indignantly, shoving his hands into the pockets of his coat. His companion just rose a brow at his behavior, not disdainful, but certainly not entertained either. The red wished he could elicit a less cold-blooded response from his friend, but alas, the kid was a rock.

"Axel... just stop complaining," the blonde replied dully, carefully dodging thorned bushes and low hanging branches. Annoyance was a good place to start.

The older one grinned quirkily. "Maybe I would if this wasn't so dumb. Common Roxas, lets just forget about it and go into town. I heard of this new shop that sells that sea-salt stuff you like so much." This managed to make the blonde turn around.

Axel wiggled his eyebrows as if to suggest that this was the most tempting offer ever made in the history of the world. This made the corners of Roxas's mouth pull into a small amused smile and something like a chuckle escaped his pink lips. Axel's insides warmed. That was the ticket.

Seeming to have noticed the lapse in his apathetic attitude, Roxas stiffened for a second before his face settled into an emotionless mask once more. Axel smirked, his stubbornness not letting this opportunity slip away.

"Hey, I'll buy. My treat," he lied. He knew that he probably had barely enough money for a single cone of icecream. However, the prospect of sharing wasn't sounding so bad either.

Roxas sighed, pulling his hood over his eyes. "Maybe...when this is over. But you know better than I do not to abandon a mission." Axel huffed, disappointed.

"Damn."

Roxas paused his clearing of the foliage. "What?"

"Nothing. Just remind me again why we can't just teleport there?"

* * *

Cloud sat on the same patch of carpet, his fingers clenching and unclenching the rough fibers. It had since been an hour but he couldn't bring himself to leave that spot, as if his enlightenment had brought him to earth and glued him to the floor. A thousand incoherent thoughts fogged his brain, and he was fishing for one that might lead to a rational explanation and decision. He felt as if he had discarded a million ideas and whims.

But one thought that he couldn't manage to get rid of was despite the confusion, he knew that as their skin touched he had felt the pulse of the heart he thought Sephiroth didn't have.

* * *

Thanks to my reviewers!(**Namiki: **hey thanks. Here's the update...a year late X3) (**Cami-BakuraChan: **hey, I'm glad to hear that people have read it the whole way through. Thank you.) (**Lain of the Weird: **Why thank you. The reason I don't have FF9 characters, or six for that matter, is because...frankly I haven't played either of them. Sorry. ;P As far as I know there's a monkey-kid and Vivi...X3 the plot...I know nothing. FF6... Its got Setzer and...Kefka? Is that right? I have no clue. Sorry again.) (**boredperson: **thank you muchly. You make me spazz out.) (**playingwithfire: **hey thanks. Yes, this is going to be both a RxS and a CxS, as you can see. But no, all I said before was that there was going to be shounen ai. Very perceptive.) ( **hbl333: **agnsty's the way I like it ;3) (**DragonRose13: **thanks coz. :B Now that you've realized Sephiroth's hotness, maybe you can appreciate CxS next X3...we'll see.) (**Dthedoommaniac: **eep! Thank you oo. Both lists huh. sniff I feel honored.) (**Kina-chan: **thanks :D) (**KaitouUssagi: **well, glad to be of service.) (**silentchill13: **yes...the thought of Sephiroth plus eye-liner makes me giddy.) (**Jan-chan: **thanks a lot. XD uh, I don't even know what a beta-reader is... is it like...a second opinion type person? Thanks for offering whatever it is!) (**KiokuYume: **arigatou.) (**Prince Ryu: **haha. Thank you. You're review made me chuckle and was rather encouraging.) (**dragonfly-affinity: **cool name. And thanks!) (**Unknown Mystery: **six...and I suggest you cut down on the caffeine, kay?) (**forgotten-rose-b: **thanks for all the reviews.) (**Kanarah J: **gracias.) (**AtticusBlackWolf: **thanks! Nice pen-name.) (**LOTRfreak85: **haha. Hey I'm one of your kind too. Thanks for the reviews.) (**Miyu:**thanks for the review. And I'm glad I could elicit some pity for poor Sephy. Yes, Ansem will eventually have a greater role. And...yeah...I've realized be now that Ansem's nobody should have been named "mansex", Quite a disappointment really XD.) (**Mrs. Tom Riddle: **Voldy...hehe. Ha. Here's that long awaited update.)

Note: I'm not quite sure where I'm going with this story... :3 any ideas would be a great help.


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